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Date: 5th June 2025
The SFSA was invited to the Accies’ Supporters Association (ASA) meeting in a club in Hamilton on Wednesday evening. The meeting was packed, with an estimated 200+ fans there. It was emotional, at times full of anger, but mostly well-ordered and attentive to the speakers. Clearly, everyone there has the Accies coursing through their veins. In that, they were no different from any other club’s fans, but for one thing. Their club is, in our view, in danger of going under and becoming another of the long list of casualties, including such famous names as Third Lanark and, more recently, Gretna.
The meeting consisted of a number of different parts. There was the formal business of the Association, specifically the election of the committee, with a chairman, deputy chair and treasurer being some of the key appointments.
Alan Russell, the CEO of Supporters Direct Scotland, spoke well and demonstrated his and his organisation’s comprehensive grasp of the legal and practical issues involved in setting up supporters’ clubs.
Our Ops Director, Alastair Blair, also addressed the meeting, explaining the dual roles of the SFSA as a think tank and 
trade union, with the emphasis on the latter and the need for the Accies’ fans to be united and not divided. He also stressed that although there would be a lot of anger and frustration on display, they must not lose sight of the key issue, namely to buy time in amongst all the heat and smoke that surrounds Hamilton Academical, in order to give their club a chance of survival.
The meeting felt there was a clear a lack of trust between all the key parties involved at Hamilton, namely the board, the stadium owner and the fans. Local MP, Imogen Walker (Labour) and the Labour party candidate for the Holyrood election being held on Thursday were there. Imogen made it clear that she will do as much as she can 
to help the club’s supporters, while Davy Russell, her party’s candidate for the Holyrood bye-election, explained to the meeting that his party intend to put forward a private member’s bill to introduce a football regulator in Scotland.
When the meeting was opened up to the floor, although there were some fans who were obviously very angry about the situation in which their club finds itself, the majority were focused and, while equally emotional, considered in their remarks. There was also a lot of praise for those fans who have led the formation – the reformation actually – of the Supporters’ group, and a commitment from the committee members to keep fighting on behalf of all Accies’ fans. The need for unity was stressed, various money raising schemes to give the ASA some income were put forward, questions were asked about the ground, the board and the ASA’s meetings with each party. The role of the SPFL, as the ultimate authority who can decide whether the club can play at Broadwood, as the directors want, was questioned, with particular emphasis on whether they (SPFL) can take account of fans’ views about a club moving to a ground at another, distant location.
The question of the lease of Broadwood was uppermost on everyone’s minds. At time of writing, we understand there is no decision yet on whether everything to do with the proposed move to the Cumbernauld ground will pass the SPFL criteria, but we also understand that the club (directors) are working hard to try to make sure it does. It seems to us that everything hangs on this. If they can’t get to play in Cumbernauld, will Accies have to throw in the towel? Could they play at another ground, possibly East Kilbride? And, most importantly, with the league fixtures due to be announced in a couple of weeks, what happens if they can’t find a place to play that satisfies the SPFL criteria? The answer, unfortunately, is they may well have played their last game.
No-one – above all the fans – wants that to happen. Although some fans at the meeting said they would be prepared to let Accies die and then try and raise them, phoenix-like from the ashes, the majority clearly want a solution that, ultimately, leads them back to playing in Hamilton, almost certainly as a fan-owned, even part-fan-owned, club. It may be that they have to buy time, to accept Broadwood if that is the option, while planning how to get back to Hamilton. But at least they would live to fight another day. It is a terrible dilemma and we think that the vast majority of fans of all other clubs will not only feel for them but will be as supportive as they can. That’s what members do in a trade union – they look out for each other. And that’s what we encourage all Accies’ fans to do, and fans of other clubs as well, because who knows, in a few years it might be your club. The whole situation at Hamilton seems to us to be a mess, but with vision and courage the ASA will, we hope, be able to continue to see their beloved club for many more years yet. There is not much time left. We wish them well.
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Tags: Scottish football