Nottingham Forest Ladies could fold within a week after the owners of the men’s team withdrew financial support.

Forest defeated Mansfield 9-1 at the weekend but now face a battle to find funds in order to field a team against Derby on Sunday.

Ladies manager Graham Abercrombie hit out at the men’s club, labelling their behaviour “embarrassing.”

“I took this job in good faith,” Abercrombie told Sky Sports News. “With a certain amount of funding being in place, which was offered to the ladies section in good faith.

“It’s an absolute shock. It shocks me on a daily basis after what people had promised to do for us. To a degree it is embarrassing.”

Lisa Dawkins, who has spent 23 years with the club as a player, manager and now director of football, said the decision had left her dumbfounded.

“I’m absolutely devastated and confused,” she said. “Most people in and around the club are quite shocked at the moment.

“We’ve got nine teams and a four-year-old kid at the club and all the children throughout the age groups are passionate about the club and one day putting on the shirt of the senior team — and that might be taken away from them now.”

Current Forest player Reanne Thomas added: “In the past we know that with other women’s teams their men’s teams have got behind them and sponsored them on player-to-player basis.

“We don’t just want to survive we want our community to get behinds us. We are a community team and we do it for the love and we just want to be here playing football.”