Crawley Town fan Steve Leake is unhappy at our coverage of his favourite football team.

He cites the examples of two pre-season victories against Conference sides, which didn't merit a mention.

"Surely you must realise the importance of support from the local press for all sides as they seek to inform their supporters and foster increased attendances?" he asks.

"The Argus seems to accept it is failing the sporting public of north Sussex who don't have an affinity to blue and white (Brighton and Hove Albion's colours)."

Not so, Mr Leake. A line has to be drawn somewhere and in this case it was for these friendlies against fellow non-league opposition. We did cover Crawley's pre-season games against league sides Brentford, Crystal Palace and the Albion.

Also, now the season has started, we will be devoting more coverage to Crawley than ever before. This includes a full report on each game and live pictures from home and away matches (this started on Tuesday with the defeat at Dover) and the best part of a page in the Sports Argus. A winning combination I reckon.

A news in brief item on Monday correctly reported the Sussex Association of Naval Officers (SANO) held a garden party in Southwick, which raised £275 for the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA) Forces Help.

However, it omitted that the party was opened by Lt Col T Irlam, chairman of the West Sussex branch of SSAFA Forces Help. My thanks to John Woods, honorary treasurer of the Cuckfield division of SSAFA Forces Help and social secretary of the SANO.

A story last Wednesday about Hove-based Hanningtons Funeral Directors' offer to mourners to release doves at the funerals of loved ones may have given the impression it was responsible for this happening at the memorial service for Sarah Payne and the funeral of Damilola Taylor.

In fact, those releases were arranged by the White Dove Company, based in Loughton, Essex. Managing director Kevin Proctor tells me it is his firm's efforts that have made the service popular with other funeral directors.

Apologies to some readers of our morning edition on Tuesday who were unable to get a copy of the Evolution Extra supplement. This was due to distribution difficulties.

Edward Goring, from Ovingdean, was fascinated to read on Monday about Lou Rapley's bed and breakfast business in an old Pullman railway carriage at Petworth. Mrs Rapley said the carriage dated back to 1923 and was part of the Golden Arrow London to Brighton route.

"That's odd," says Mr Goring. "When I travelled on the Golden Arrow from Victoria we always ended up in Paris, its usual destination. To be sure of arriving in Brighton by Pullman we boarded the Brighton Belle." Many thanks and I am sure Mrs Rapley will be grateful too.

And finally, a postscript to last week's item about how long it would take to count the pebbles on Brighton beach. William Fraser, from Hailsham, questioned physics lecturer Malcolm Cornwall's estimate of between 2,500 years and the latter owned up by saying he had been rushed in his estimation and praised Mr Fraser for his more accurate estimation of between 3,160 and 3,170 years.

Now Mr Fraser tells me: "It has finally happened - a physics scholar has congratulated me! In contrast to my English teacher, who knew boundless joy when he read my essays, my physics master commented in my third form report, 'He has almost no idea of what is required in physics'. Rather generous I felt, so my congratulations by Dr Cornwall will be enlarged and suitably framed."

Yes, but by exactly how much?