Sidley confident of upsetting leaders

Chichester City United roll into Gullivers on Saturday January 24 for what should be an fascinating encounter.

The Blues have underachieved for various reasons this season and sit in the lower half of the Division One table, but a very impressive win at fourth-placed Hassocks on Friday night suggests they might have finally turned the corner.

Joint manager Andy Laskey said: "If we play at the right pace then I would say we would be a match for them. We do tend to struggle against the so-called lesser teams when we have to take the game to them but if we play how we did the other night then I think we could do well. As long as we are in a positive frame of mind I suppose we would be quietly confident."

Left-sided player Craig Ottley was due to sign from top flight rivals Eastbourne Town on Wednesday and provided there are no hiccups he will go straight into the starting line-up in place of the unavailable Jimmy Watson.

"If we play the system we have been playing with wing-backs Craig would be ideal for that," explained Laskey. "He's quite attack-minded. When we played Eastbourne earlier in the season in our view he was their best player. His inclusion will also give us the option of pushing Dave Ward into midfield because we have missed his creativity in there."

Central defender Lee Wood aggravated a thigh injury in training so Neil Maplesden stands by. Striker Kevin Rose has completed his five-week suspension but could play for the reserves to make sure he gets a game.