Hednesford Town nearing takeover by online platform

The 139-year-old club, who play their games at Keys Park, were put up for sale by Steve Price last year.

And now Own A Football Club (OWNAFC) are believed to be edging towards gaining control of the Pitmen, with a vote taking place on Wednesday evening among the platform's 3,500-plus members.

If a deal did happen, the app's members – who have paid a one-off £49 fee to be involved – would be able to have their say on new signings, hiring and firing staff, negotiating contracts, selecting the squad, setting admission prices and planning training sessions.

Stuart Harvey, OWNAFC's founder, is understood to have attended Hednesford's last three games. They play in the Northern Premier – three levels below the Football League.

On its website, OWNAFC claims: "OWNAFC offers you the once-in-a-lifetime chance to be at the forefront of a whole new generation of football club owners.

"Become an OWNA, take charge of a real-life football club, and taste the glory of the game at first hand. This is your unique opportunity to be a part of the biggest revolution in football since the dawn of the Sky Sports era in 1992."

However, Supporters Direct and the Football Supporters' Federation have detailed their fears in a joint statement.

"Hednesford Town, the 139-year-old Staffordshire club, were recently put up for sale by their owner and reports over the weekend indicate that the OWNAFC platform are moving towards a takeover," they said.

"We firmly believe any prospective owner of a football club should meaningfully engage with the stakeholders at that club, chief among whom are the supporters, for any takeover to have legitimacy and ultimately to be sustainable and successful.

"Consultation, the option for critical questioning and the development of structured supporter engagement is a vital ingredient to success at any club, particularly one operating within the National Game.

"Supporters Trusts are open, inclusive, non-profit organisations which operate as one member one vote for the benefit of the supporters and the community served by the club and as such are not fundraising machines or 'cash cows' to plug club financial shortfalls.

"Despite their doubtless enthusiasm, we are concerned that the lack of meaningful engagement with the club’s existing supporters and a business model similar to that of MYFC means that a repeat of the ultimately failed takeover of Ebbsfleet United back in 2008 is likely.

"We have been working closely with the Supporters Association at Hednesford Town to explore alternative ownership options for the club following the announcement of the owner’s willingness to sell, and we will continue to offer Hednesford Town’s fans our support."

Ebbsfleet were taken over by online platform MyFootballClub in 2008 but the project turned sour as interest waned. They sold the club in 2013 for what was said to be a modest sum.