BLACKPOOL, England — Judge us at the end of the season, not now, Karl Oyston wrote to the supporters of Blackpool F.C. last August. A week before the season, Blackpool had only eight players on its books and no goalkeepers, and Oyston, the club’s embattled chairman, had some explaining to do.
The squad that was eventually assembled, full of trainees and players in on trial, opened the season by going 11 games without a win. It has closed it just as poorly, without a victory since January.
Now, the end of the season — one characterized by protests, libel lawsuits and, as of last week, the mysterious disappearance of a statue — has arrived.