Eighteen months ago, the club was days from folding. The owner had disappeared, the debts stood at £4 million, and the players hadn't been paid in two months. The ground was padlocked. The kit was in a skip.
What happened next is the kind of story that football occasionally produces and that supporters' groups spend years trying to make happen. The fans' trust, which had been dormant for years, reconvened. A crowdfunding campaign raised £180,000 in 72 hours. A local businessman offered a bridging loan. A new board was formed.
The club finished last season in mid-table — unremarkable by any measure, but extraordinary given where they were 18 months earlier. Attendances are up. The youth academy, which had been suspended, is running again. The club shop, which had been closed, reopened in March.
The chairman of the supporters' trust, who asked not to be named, said the experience had changed how he thought about football. "It's not about the Premier League. It's about the community. This club has been here for 112 years. We weren't going to let it go."
The story has attracted attention from fan groups at other clubs facing financial difficulty. Several have contacted the trust asking for advice. The model — community ownership, transparent finances, supporter representation on the board — is not new, but it is gaining ground.