ACCRINGTON STANLEY fans slammed the club’s “disgraceful” 43-word statement after sacking their long-serving manager.
The League Two side were thumped 4-0 away at Wrexham yesterday – conceding all four in the first half in North Wales.
John Coleman’s ten-year stint as Accrington Stanley boss ended after defeat at WrexhamRex
Accrington Stanley
That left the ‘Owd Reds 16th in the table after a third defeat in a row as hopes of securing a play-off spot appear to be fading.
And it spelt the end for Coleman, who had been boss since 2014, and his assistant Jimmy Bell.
Before this decade-long stint, Coleman had also managed Accrington from 1999 to 2012 taking them from the Northern Premier League to the EFL – totalling nearly 23 years in the What Stadium dugout.
But despite his dedicated service to the club dating back to the previous century, the 61-year-old’s exit was announced with a brief, blunt comment from the club.
The statement said: “Accrington Stanley can today confirm that John Coleman and Jimmy Bell have been informed that their contracts are terminated with immediate effect.
“Everyone at the club thanks them for their long-standing service and we wish them all the very best for the future.”
However, the ridiculously short press release prompted a furious backlash from raging supporters on social media.
One said: “Are you taking the p***? They deserve better than that, after such brilliant and long service.”
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Another wrote: “Is this statement for two people who have given nearly 25 years of service to the club?”
A third added: “The manner of this statement is horrendously thought out. Two paragraphs for almost 25 years of promotions from obscurity in non-league to punching their weight in the EFL really does leave a very bad taste. It’s the end of a bloody great era.”
A fourth fumed: “A truly graceless statement. Over two decades at the club, John Coleman has the respect of many in the game and deserved better than this shoddy paragraph.”
And a final user simply replied: “Shocking.”
To make matters worse, unpopular Accrington owner Andy Holt appeared to delete his X account immediately after news of Coleman’s sacking broke.
Holt – who famously put the club up for sale on the social media platform – regularly got into bitter spats online.
That included a row with Boris Johnson during Covid and Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney’s Wrexham over ticket prices.
The Hollywood pair’s side were angered that Accrington hiked up prices for their fans’ trip to the Wham Stadium – and responded by reducing the costs for yesterday’s return fixture.
That led to Holt hitting out at Wrexham’s “stupid mistimed statements”.
And just two weeks ago, the controversial owner revealed on X he was raising season ticket prices and the cost of beer to fix a “million-pound hole” at the club relegated last season.