Former professional Peter Heritage is happy for Sidley United's County League title challenge to go unnoticed.

A fabulous run of results has seen Sidley move to within five points of the top of division one with games in hand. But their success has gone largely unnoticed as the title talk surrounds the competition between Burgess Hill, Pagham and Horsham YMCA.

Heritage, Sidley's assistant-manager and in-form striker, is just glad to be part of the most exciting of County League title races for years.

Heritage, 40, said: "We are quite happy to go about doing our own business. We have put a good run together and all of a sudden people have started to take notice.

"But we are quite happy to let everybody else take the limelight."

Having been promoted to the top flight in 1999, Sidley took time to adapt to their new surroundings but this season it has all come together for Dickie Day's side.

Heritage, who played for Gillingham, Hereford and Doncaster in a League career which spanned 145 appearances and 22 goals, has been at the forefront of the club's progress.

He said: "We only came up last year but on paper we have got a very good side. I know we are the underdogs but we have a lot of experienced players here.

"At the moment everything is looking rosy but we have not won anything yet in division one.

"Burgess Hill are still the yardstick for clubs to measure themselves against. Anyone who finishes about Burgess Hill should win the league.

"Our aim is just to finish as high as we can in the league. If we won it, it would be a bonus. If we finished third it would be a great achievement."

Heritage admitted Sidley is not a great catchment area.

He said: "We are competing with the likes of St Leonards, Hastings and Langney for players. They are all on our doorstep plus we have the Eastbourne sides, Hailsham and Rye United.

"We don't pay but we pick up players who are not getting in at other clubs.

"We have some very good players and almost all of them have played at Southern League standard."

As for Heritage himself, he said: "Management is something I am looking to. I am learning a lot from Dickie Day.

"I have played under some good managers both in professional and non-league level. The biggest influence on my career was John Sillett at Hereford. I learned a lot from him and probably played my best football with him."

As for Sidley's future, he added: "We can't progress higher than County League.

"We know our limitations but that won't stop our ambitions of trying to win it."