HUNDREDS of Oldham Athletic fans gathered outside of Boundary Park in the hour before kick-off against Crawley Town as the end loomed.

Latics faced the final curtain in the Football League, as a season that had resulted in relegation came to a close at home.

It was a last chance too, for now at least, for furious and frustrated fans to come together in opposition against the ownership.

The campaign has been punctuated by protests as anger and resentment grew towards a regime that has overseen two relegations in four years and wrecked 126 years of history in a comparative blink of an eye.

Owner Abdallah Lemsagam calmed the mood when he dangled the carrot of change back in January, first stating he would sell up before appointing club legend John Sheridan for a sixth spell in charge after a far too long hiatus between head coaches.

Fans backed off and backed the survival bid and their beloved 'Shez', who stated a case, of which he was certain when he returned.

"When I returned to the club in January, I did so with the sole intention of preserving the EFL status that means so much to us," wrote Sheridan in the Boundary Bulletin - not so much the head coach's programme notes but a personal message to the supporters.

Regrets, Sheridan admits he has had a few, and he feels the players should too for their part in the outcome of a season in which relegation was no longer avoidable in the final, and painful, two games.

"I have been very honest with the players in my assessment of where things have gone wrong," he continued.

But returning to Boundary Park is not something Sheridan wishes he had done differently.

"Everyone knows the huge affection I have for this club and its fanbase. Oldham Athletic will always have a very special place in my heart and the prospect of beginning life outside of League football is still very difficult to comprehend," he wrote.

Yes, there were times, he's sure you knew when he bit off more than he could chew.

A seven-game unbeaten start upon his return, including back-to-back wins against relegation rivals Scunthorpe and a Bristol Rovers side who went on to secure automatic promotion in dramatic fashion on the final day, lulled Latics into a false sense of security. Injuries and suspensions had a devastating effect on a small squad assembled under a strict transfer embargo. And after that unbeaten run was ended by a Carlisle side that needed a win to stay out of the drop zone themselves - a game which changed after top scorer Davis Keillor-Dunn missed a penalty - Latics have picked up only seven points from a possible 42 since.

"There have been times over the past three months when we seemed more than capable of achieving survival but the bottom line is that we have not been good enough and as a playing squad, there must be collective responsibility for the failings of this season," wrote Sheridan, who witnessed repeats of the mistakes that have proved perpetually costly on the day they bowed out of the League as Latics pressed the self destruct button on a quickfire and deserved 2-0 lead given to them by Jack Stobbs and Keillor-Dunn.

Some farcical footwork by the usually reliable Danny Rogers invited Crawley back into the game and it was 2-2 at the break. Latics, who regained the lead with a Jordan Clarke rocket, were pegged back again and ultimately signed off with a point. It was better than nothing, but it should have been more. The first 45 minutes had told the story of their season amid an eerie atmosphere. The game started and ended to a chorus of "Abdallah out" chants. But they were not sustained. Fans have grown weary of the constant battle, but it is one that you fear is still a long way from being over.

Sheridan has faced it all and stood tall, to the point where he has refused to walk away and instead embark on an alternative Shezurrection. Having twice saved the club from the drop in two of his five previous spells in charge, the 57-year-old has pledged to stay to lead the fight back to the Football League.

"This is clearly a pivotal time in the club's history and the coming months will be crucial in shaping the future direction and how successfully we can respond," he continued.

"Committing straight away to next season not only goes some way to repaying the loyalty I have been shown but it also means no time will be lost as we prepare for the significant challenge that next season will bring."

Oldham Athletic have lived a Football League life that’s full. They’ve travelled each and every highway of it, meaning they now have the ignominy of being the first former Premier League club to exit the Football League altogether 115 years after this once proud club entered it.

Devastatingly for the fans and everyone connected with the club, the Lemsagams did it their way.

There has been a catalogue of costly mistakes. The only thing they have got right in the eyes of supporters is bringing Sheridan back; the only decision they have made that has united this fractured football club and its followers.

If there is to be any hope of a revival under this regime, from now on, John Sheridan must be allowed to do it his way.