international Kyle Lightbourne will soon join him on the unemployment list.

McHale, sacked by Scarborough three-and-a-half weeks ago, feels that the club jumped the gun on him and has not given the young team a chance -- Lightbourne included.

"I am very disappointed to be sacked,'' he said from his Scarborough home yesterday. "I feel we had got a good, young, exciting team that beat Coventry and Plymouth and ran Arsenal close in the League Cup. And Arsenal went on to win it.

"Kyle fitted in well and I am amazed that Scarborough have released him. The time has come for him to return to Bermuda, rest and build himself up.

"He was superb in training and was going to get stronger as he went along.'' Lightbourne is in the middle of an upsetting contract settlement with the club offering to buy him out for $1,200 shortly after he signed a one-year extension under McHale that was to bring him approximately $25,000.

This week the former PHC striker said he was prepared to go to court to make certain that Scarborough honour their commitment to him.

"I have a guaranteed contract and I'm willing to fight this and even take it to court,'' Lightbourne said. "I'm not going to give in until I get my money.'' McHale added: "Scarborough extended his contract and they've got to come to some agreement with Kyle.'' Since McHale's firing, Scarborough have slipped from promotion play-off candidates under former assistant Phil Chambers to also-rans in mid-table of the Third Division.

McHale contends there was a chance to get in the promotion picture if the executive did not over-react.

"When I was sacked we had 10 games left, seven at home and three away, so we still had a good chance to get into the play-offs.'' McHale joined the team three-and-a-half years ago as a player/assistant manager. He brought the club up from non-league status two seasons ago and they had a favourable first season.

Apparently, the hierarchy wanted instant success.

"In my time there I sold 14 players for 730,000 pounds, so we could not keep our talent,'' he said. "There is not too much passion for football here.

People come here to retire from the bigger cities and it takes a while for them to support the club.'' McHale, whose playing career captured 104 goals in 650 English League matches with Brighton, Barnsley, Sheffield United, Rochdale, Swansea and Scarborough, is only now considering his managing options.

In the meantime, local agent Mark Trott has resigned himself to the fact that Lightbourne will no longer be a Scarborough player. But he intimated yesterday, without going into detail, that moves are afoot to have him try out at a few clubs this summer.

SCARBOROUGH FAIR? -- Kyle Lightbourne was released by English team.