The ill-feeling at Mike Derbyshire's sacking has been voiced loudly and clearly by Great Yarmouth Town's players.

Fed-up members of the Bloaters' squad have not been shy in showing their disapproval at the decision to axe the 46-year-old last week. First, a statement on behalf of the squad was read out on BBC Radio Norfolk's 'local report' with Nick Bowler on Friday night.

And then a host of current Yarmouth stars, including Scott Woodcock, pictured, took to their own club's forum this week to express their dismay at Derbyshire's shock dismissal which has come in for criticism across the region's non-league scene. Woodcock said: 'As a senior player I cannot see where the ambition and driving force behind this football club is coming from!'

Interim chairman Len Beresford, who fired the first-team boss and his assistant Robert 'Bob' Hepburn by e-mail, insists he understands the footballers' 'feelings of anger and bewildement'. But that hasn't stopped them making their opinions known to those outside of the Thurlow Nunn First Division club.

'The most obvious thing we could have done as players was to strike. But we have decided to leave the bad PR stunts to the board, stick together, play for each other and the town,' said the statement, which was also published in full in Saturday's paper.

Derbyshire, whose side were just five points off the promotion places when he was shown the exit door, feels he was sacked due to a brief row about what he described as the mistreatment of sponsors. Beresford alluded to a fall-out between the pair when giving his reasons for the parting of ways.

Former reserve boss Lee Hackleton will once again be unable to take charge of his maiden first-team game this weekend. Yarmouth's trip to Needham Market Reserves fell foul of the weather yesterday. A host of other Thurlow Nunn fixtures in the Premier Division and second-tier looked to be in doubt overnight.