CHRIS Hussey believes Bury can challenge for promotion after his side extended their winning streak to four matches with victory at home to Coventry on Saturday.

The Shakers have beaten three of the top six sides in League One during a run that has taken them up to fifth place in the table, just five points behind leaders Burton.

And they travel to Peterborough tonight hoping to add to their record of 15 matches unbeaten on the road.

“Now we have seen the other teams in the league we have got that belief that we can go and get promotion,” said Hussey.

“We are fifth in the league, so why not?”

The Bury full-back’s bold statement, made after laying on the Shakers’ opening goal in their latest victory, was quickly followed up by a word of caution.

Hussey says he and his team-mates will not be getting carried away after storming to the top of League Two in September last year only to see their form nosedive.

They almost fell out of the promotion race completely before clawing their way back into contention after Christmas and eventually securing third place on the final day of the season.

“I have been reading Gary Neville’s book and he said the last couple of months are the most important,” said the 26-year-old defender.

“The end is where your standing in the league is determined. At the beginning you are just tussling for a position to fight for in the last couple of games.

“So we are not getting carried away.

“We have been through this and are not going to make the same mistake twice.”

Bury’s mounting injury list could well have a say in how far they can progress.

Striker Tom Pope missed Saturday’s win with a stomach bug while Flitcroft was forced to name four youth-team players on the bench, with strikers Danny Nardiello and Ryan Lowe, midfielders Andrew Tutte and Kelvin Etuhu and defender Keil O’Brien also out injured.

Doctors will have to give Pope a clean bill of health before he is allowed to rejoin the squad while the rest of the walking wounded will remain sidelined tonight as Flitcroft prepares his side for new Peterborough manager Graham Westley’s first home match in charge.

Posh moved up to 14th in the table after he guided them to victory over Chesterfield at the weekend.

And Flitcroft acknowledged: “It will be a tough evening. They have got a new manager and a new wave of expectancy.

“The manager has already said about the money that they have spent down there. I think they have had £1.5million worth of talent on the bench.

“It is a place where we are going to go and again give a lot of respect to. They have been in the Championship, they have been backed by the chairman and they are a good football club.

“We have just got to make sure that we are on task.”