The deluge, including sleet, follows a week of inclement weather - and a game on the pitch just three days earlier.

The decision was made after an inspection at 1.15pm.

The postponement's only positive note for Stags is that they had four midfield players out injured which let them well under strength.

Equally the match would have given the club a chance to climb off the bottom of the League Two table ahead of next Saturday's huge six-pointer at Grimsby.

However, the postponement will add to a growing fixture congestion for the Stags - with two Tuesdays in January - 8th and 15th - already pencilled in for re-arranged matches, against Wycombe and Wrexham.

Manager Billy Dearden said: "There is water all over the surface - it's really coming down here.

"The ball is not running on it and the forecast is terrible so that's that.

"If we had started it and the rain had carried on we would have had to call it off during the game and that's one thing you don't want.

"The decision was made before they opened the gates.

"It's another one we have to fit in now.

"We did have a lot of injuries today and we would have been a lot weaker than we have been recently. So it does give us the chance to get one or two players fit.

"But you naturally want to play the game and Bury had one or two out too. I am sure we would have got by. But there's nothing we can do about it."

Many fans had threatened to boycott the game in protest at owner Keith Haslam's recent decision not to sell the club to the James Derry consortium - and others were planning to join a protest organised by Stags Fans For Change and TEAM Mansfield.