Crisis-hit SPFL club hit with third points deduction of year as off-field turmoil continues

The crisis-hit club was first hit with a 15-point deduction in April for various rule breaches which resulted in relegation from the Championship to League One.

A six-point deduction was then imposed in October when Accies were again deemed to have breached multiple SPFL rules by making payments to trialists and amateur players while under a transfer embargo.

Now the club has today (Tuesday) been docked a further nine points by the SPFL for failing to hold a Bronze-level SFA licence due to the club's accounts being unaudited. This was despite the club receiving "multiple extensions" to a March 31 deadline for the matter to be resolved.

The latest sanction has dropped Hamilton to eighth position in the League One table on 13 points, three points above Cove Rangers and four clear of bottom club Kelty Hearts. Without the deductions Accies would be second in the table, five points behind leaders Inverness, who themselves started the campaign with a five point deduction following last season's administration.

Accies have been embroiled in off-field issues with a transfer ban imposed in July due to tax breaches while sole director Strain last week lost his attempt to appeal against an SFA ruling that he was not fit and proper to hold a position within football, although he has vowed to challenge the decision elsewhere.

Jonny Towers, an executive at a loan company that recently bailed Accies out of further financial trouble, was appointed on the board in his place on Monday.

The Funding Globe provided finances at short notice when, according to an Accies statement, the club were “advised by majority shareholder Seref Zengin that, despite previous assurances, player and staff wages would not be paid” for December.

Zengin was also recently ruled not fit and proper by the SFA.

In a statement on Monday night, ahead of the tribunal, Accies said: “At this critical time, the club has formally requested guidance and support from both the SFA and SPFL to help ensure a stable and sustainable future for Hamilton Academical Football Club.”

Hamilton are currently under the leadership of acting head coach Darian MacKinnon following the resignation of John Rankin in the wake of the latest uncertainty over wage payments.

They left the Lanarkshire town in the summer to play at Broadwood in Cumbernauld after a breakdown in talks with the club’s former owners, who kept hold of New Douglas Park when Zengin acquired a majority stake in 2023.