Oxford City have been left in turmoil after four senior players walked out following the resignation of manager Paul Lee.

Defender Lewis Craker has left for Aylesbury, while top-scorer Colin Simpson, fellow striker Jamie Charles and midfielder Shaun Wimble have now also gone, leaving City in disarray.

Lee, who took over as manager five years ago, quit on Thursday after issuing the Ryman League Division 1 North club with a 'back me or sack me' ultimatum at their monthly board meeting.

He was persuaded to stay on until after Saturday's match against Tilbury.

Assistant boss Mickey Lewis, coaches Kelvin Alexis and Jan Varney, plus physio Chris Perkins have also left.

A statement from City's board said: "Paul felt he had given everything, but still results had failed to improve. We reluctantly decided to accept his resignation, and appreciate the tremendous amount of hard work he, Mickey Lewis and Kelvin Alexis put in during their five years."

Lee said: "I had the impression that things were going on behind the scenes at the club. That's the most disappointing thing.

"But I'm proud of what I achieved at the club. I won the Senior Cup three times and with the various transfers and FA Cup matches, I generated £200, 000 for the club.

"But it's no secret that my budget was cut every season, and it's been difficult to survive in the league with the money that has been available.

"I really enjoyed my time at City, particularly the FA Cup games against Wycombe."

Defender Julian Dark has taken temporary charge, and his first job is to prepare the players for tomorrow night's league trip to Barking.

Dark, who is on the injury list, said: "It was a bit of a shock. I turned up to watch Saturday's game late because I was injured and was told it was Paul's last game in charge.

"They asked me if I could take over for the Barking game. I do want to get into coaching eventually, but I think it's probably too early to talk about the City job.

"I'm just happy helping them out. I feel honoured and proud to be asked to help."