As the sun dipped behind Gigg Lane stadium a crowd huddled around a single car, listening to the news and praying for the future of their beloved Bury FC.

The 134-year-old club have not played a game this season and will be expelled from the English Football League (EFL) on Saturday unless the owner, Steve Dale, can prove they have the funding to continue.

Bury stalwart Jill Neville urges Steve Dale to give up control of club in letter Read more

As the clock ticked down, the town held its breath. Outside the club’s stadium, nerves and tempers were frayed. A coffin, marked “RIP Bury FC”, was erected outside the club doors. A stream of supporters, many emotional, ripped up season tickets and demanded refunds. On Wednesday, a former director had handcuffed herself to a drainpipe.

With about two hours to go before the deadline, those waiting nervously for a saviour were given hope as Dale claimed to have agreed to a sale. He did not reveal with whom he had reached an agreement, but the bidders – who included Rory Campbell, the son of the former Labour spin doctor Alastair – later released a statement which said they had been in discussions for the past 10 weeks. Minutes before the deadline the EFL said that Dale had notified it that he had accepted an offer from C&N Sporting Risk, run by Campbell and Henry Newman. The company describes itself as “experts in predictive modelling in professional sporting industries”.

Earlier, wearing a “Forever Bury” T-shirt, 73-year-old Jean Hall was one of the first outside Gigg Lane on Friday because, she said, she wanted “to see my football club one more time”. “It’s absolutely disgusting what’s happened,” she said, holding back tears.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Jean Hall: ‘I can’t imagine this going, not after all these years.’ Photograph: Joel Goodman/The Guardian

There is anger at Dale, who bought the indebted club for £1 in December, and anger at the EFL, which allowed him to take over without proving he had sufficient funds. Now the club’s future is in the balance, only three months after winning promotion to the third tier of English football.

“The thing in Bury is the football club and the market and without any of them Bury is nothing,” said Hall. “I can’t imagine this going, not after all these years. This ground is worth more than a pound to us – it’s worth more than any money.”

The economic impact of the club’s demise would be “pretty colossal – and that’s not an exaggeration”, said David Jones, the Bury council leader. The former mill town has survived tough times for the high street, thanks largely to its famous, noise-filled market which attracts coachloads of visitors every week to its nearly 400 stalls.

Play Video 1:42 Bury FC expelled from EFL after 125 years – video report

Its town centre, remarkably, has no vacant shop units and benefited from a fortuitously timed cash boost shortly before the financial crash 11 years ago. But Bury residents have borne the brunt of shrinking services, such as children’s care and library closures, due to cuts in central government funding. Since 2010, the council has lost £85m from its coffers – equivalent to 61% of its annual budget.

Losing the football club would be a shuddering blow to a town doing its best to survive, said Jones. “It’s an iconic situation to have a football club that brings in visitors every Saturday – and we get our name read out on the football results. These are all important things for the life of the town and if that were to stop, there’s one nail in the coffin for Bury and this vibrant town that you see now.”

Q&A Other football clubs that went to the brink Show Hide Maidstone United The most recent club to be forced out of the Football League due to bankruptcy, Maidstone United had reached the Fourth Division in 1989, but their ground did not meet capacity requirements for league football. Being forced to gound-share added to their financial woes, and they were ultimately unable to start the 1992–93 season. A new Maidstone United were founded by fans, and the club now plays in the National League, the division below League Two. Aldershot Aldershot had been debt-laden for several years in the late eighties and early nineties. At one point it seemed they had been saved by teenage property developer Spencer Trethewy, although it transpired he did not have the funds he claimed. The club played their final league game in March 1992, and resigned from the league after becoming insolvent. In response a group of supporters set up a new club, Aldershot Town, which started five levels below the division, and now play in the National League, Leeds United The former chairman Peter Ridsdale famously said the Yorkshire club “lived the dream” during a period when they reached the Champions League semi-finals but vastly over-reached financially, were relegated and slid down to the third tier of English football in 2007 after entering administration. It has been a slow road back and the club has not been back in the top division since. Portsmouth Two years after winning the FA Cup, in 2010 they became the first Premier League club to go into administration, owing £135m. They slid down the divisions, ending up in the bottom tier and only surviving thanks to the tireless efforts of supporters. But since the Portsmouth supporters trust took control of the club in 2014, the feel-good factor has returned. It is now owned by the former Disney chief executive Michael Eisner. Southampton After a free-spending period, the club were relegated in 2005 and four years later were relegated into the third tier, went into administration and teetered on the brink of bankruptcy. But the club recovered to win back-to-back promotions and remain a rehabilitated force in the Premier League. Darlington A move to a new 25,000-capacity stadium in 2003 was a factor in driving the club into administration in 2012 and, because it could not pay its creditors, being expelled by the Football Association. Fans immediately formed a new club called Darlington 1883 and started again from the ninth tier of English football. In 2012, the FA approved its request to change its name back to Darlington FC.

Some businesses are already suffering due to the club’s postponed start to the season. A stone’s throw from Gigg Lane, Debra Melia’s cafe, Daphne’s, has served club staff, youth players and supporters for seven years, charging a budget £3.90 for a full breakfast with black pudding.

“If Bury goes it will definitely have a big impact on the whole row of shops. Ridiculously so,” she said. “As soon as we know that the football season starts, we know that business picks up on a Saturday and it hasn’t done. Hopefully it won’t fold and we’ll get some business back.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Debra Melia at Daphne’s cafe says the loss of the club would damage her business. Photograph: Joel Goodman/The Guardian

Nestled between terraced houses less than a mile from the town centre, Gigg Lane has been the club’s home since 1885. Physically and emotionally, it is in the heart of the community. Every year it hosts a bonfire night fireworks display and has a drive-in movie night at Christmas.

On the pitch, Bury have a glittering past, winning two FA Cups, eight promotions and silverware stretching back to when Queen Victoria was on the throne. For many, the club’s crisis shines the light again on serious failings in modern football. Just 14 miles away, the two Manchester teams benefit from untold riches while smaller neighbours struggle to pay the bills. Bolton Wanderers, Oldham Athletic and Macclesfield Town are all currently in financial trouble.

“It’s not just a club – it’s a community for other things,” said Susan Nicholson, 48, while printing a “Save Bury FC” T-shirt at her stall in Bury market. Nicholson takes her 12-year-old son to watch Bury because tickets for Manchester United are too expensive.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Susan Nicholson: ‘It’s not just a club – it’s a community for other things.’ Photograph: Joel Goodman/The Guardian

Helen Richardson, 34, has had a season ticket since she was two years old, and a blue flag displaying the club’s Shakers nickname flies proudly from her front garden opposite the stadium. “It’s absolutely disgusting – the EFL needs to be reformed. You can’t have people buying a club for a pound and bleeding it dry,” she said. “Clubs like this for small towns – it’s the heart and soul of the community. It’s heartbreaking.”

Andy Moore, 62, a season ticket holder for more than 30 years, waited for news outside Gigg Lane. His son, also a lifelong Bury fan, was born on the day they won the Lancashire Cup in 1983 – 36 years ago on Saturday. “He’s in bits at the minute. You just feel powerless.”

Moore said he could not contemplate supporting another club if Bury were expelled. “That’s it – finished,” he said. “It’s a focal point for people. If you take that from the town then what’s left? We will be remembered for the wrong reasons – the town that lost its football team.”