Grimsby player-manager Paul Groves has been given the go-ahead to open contract negotiations with his players who are out of contract at the end of the season.

The board of directors have granted Groves permission to begin talks with senior players such as captain John McDermott, Tony Gallimore, Steve Livingstone, Stacy Coldicott and George Santos, who will be free agents in the summer.

Groves said: "We will now be speaking to them, so we'll take it from there and see what happens."

Following the collapse of the ITV Digital deal, football clubs have had to restructure their wage bills accordingly and Groves admitted many of the senior players may have to take a pay cut.

He added: "There are a lot of questions that need to be answered."