ACCRINGTON Stanley could have a major decision to make next week after the Fighting Fund confirmed that they will make a formal offer of £250,000 to the club on Monday – just days before Dave O’Neill could be set to complete his takeover of the Reds.

Long-serving chairman Eric Whalley holds a 56 per cent majority shareholding at the club but O’Neill is thought to be close to completing a protracted deal to buy a large of proportion of Whalley’s shares and take control.

Before that, though, Stanley will receive an offer on Monday from the Fighting Fund, which was set up by supporters last week at a meeting led by the club’s second biggest shareholder Ilyas Khan.

Khan has already put £250,000 of his own money into the fund and will invest more if a further £250,000 cannot be raised in the next 12 months.

The Fighting Fund’s offer would see the fans take control but would require Stanley to agree to a share issue because Khan is not willing to buy out Whalley’s stake.

The Fighting Fund have been in contact with Stanley via solicitors.

“I can now confirm that the fighting fund will make a formal offer to the club on Monday,” said Khan. “That will be for a figure of £250,000, which could rise to £500,000.

“The rest of the details will have to be worked out with the club. I don’t know how the club will react but I’m in good heart about the situation.”

O’Neill returns from the Football League’s annual meeting in Portugal over the weekend but Heys said: “It will be up to the majority shareholder, which is Eric, as to how he deals with it.

"But we just need everyone to pull together because we’re not a big enough club to have different factions. Everyone has the club’s best interests at heart.”