Sidley eager to stay on top

That’s the view of captain Scott Woodroffe after back-to-back wins over Seaford and Crawley have put Sidley six points clear at the top of Sussex Division Three (East).

A quietly confident Woodroffe said: “It’s still early days and we’ve got some good sides to play, but we are good enough to stay up there. I think we’re just concentrating one week at a time at the moment and if we’re there or

thereabouts with three or four games to go, anything can happen.

“We’ve got to make sure we keep producing consistent performances each week, and with a bit of luck with the toss or the conditions or the availability of players, who knows? At the moment the atmosphere’s really good. We’ve got a really good team spirit going and hopefully everyone’s enjoying it.”

Paul Swannell is the division’s second highest wicket-taker so far with 12 victims at 12.83, while with the bat, Sidley have only lost 10 wickets in their three matches to date and just four in the last two games.

Sidley will undergo a stern test of their title credentials tomorrow (Saturday) away to a fifth-placed Lindfield side which is one of two teams in the division yet to taste defeat.

“They’re a good side, no doubt about that,” continued Woodroffe. “Looking at the scorecards, I think a lot revolves around their Australian (Bret Silvey, who has already scored a century this season), who’s a good player and is always up the top of the averages each year.

“If we can manage to sneak him out early and put pressure on the other guys, I think that’s what we’ll be looking at. It will be a tough game, but with the side we’ve got, we’re capable of beating anyone. We’ve got to concentrate on ourselves and make sure we turn up.”

Dan Auer, Kevin Deeprose and Richard Harrison are unavailable, but Peter King and Paul Nice are set to return. John Haffenden is battling to shake off a sore leg, while Ian Crittenden isn’t yet ready to return from injury.