Dr Martens Premier Division Bluebirds' fans only have a few more days to wait to find out who the club's new manager will be.

Chairman Malcolm Lyus expects to announce the name of the person who will take over the reigns at Hardenhuish Park early on Monday morning.

On Monday and Tuesday nights the club was conducting interviews with potential successors to the sacked Tommy Saunders .

The deadline for applications is tomorrow and, although some applicants have already been able to put their cases forward, Lyus did not rule out appointing a late applicant if they were the right person for the job.

Among the contenders interviewed this week were said to be Paulton Rovers boss Darren Perrin, former Swindon Town striker Steve White and ex-Forest Green and Newport County coach Chris Smith.

Former Cardiff City manager Kenny Hibbert and Swindon Town legend Paul Bodin are both rumoured to have expressed an interest in the vacancy but had not formally applied for the position as the Gazette went to press yesterday afternoon.

Lyus said: "We've had over 32 applicants and it's really now a case of sitting down and deciding what kind of manager we want."

He said the club's executive would be meeting on Sunday evening before making an announcement on their decision the following morning.

"Like with our last manager we are looking for someone from the area who knows the local football scene inside out," added Lyus.

"The management situation at Bath has speeded things up a little. But I am confident that even if they appointed our first choice manager we would still have a number of excellent candidates to choose from."

Lyus added that the new manager would have a similar playing budget to work with to that of their predecessor Saunders. "I have made it clear in the press that the budget will be around £3,000 per week," he said.