Fakenham Town kick off their Thurlow Nunn League Premier Division season on Saturday having finally completed their pre-season preparations.

The Ghosts finished off their summer friendlies last night by drawing 1-1 at home against King’s Lynn Town Reserves. And having played host to development sides recently from both Leicester City and Norwich City, Fakenham are now ready to welcome Hadleigh United and will be looking to continue the league form which saw them beat off the fear of relegation on the final day of last term.

A 1-0 win at Walsham-le-Willows helped the Ghosts retain their top-flight status, having spent a fair chunk of the 2015/2016 campaign at the wrong end of the table.

Ghosts manager Wayne Anderson will be hoping his side don’t have a similar season this time around and has added a few new faces to his squad ahead of the league opener.

“It’s pretty much as we were last season to a certain degree, but I’m also pleased to be able to bring a few new lads into what is already a good squad”, he said.

“It was great to have professional development sides as opposition this pre-season, and it’s certainly helped out with our overall fitness and preparation. We now need to really focus on the job in hand, and get off to a good start in the league, and maybe have an FA Cup run too.”

The Ghosts host Sleaford Town in the extra-preliminary round of that illustrious competition next Saturday.

The weekend’s pre-season friendly against Norwich’s youngsters resulted in a 5-0 defeat in incredibly warm conditions, with Ghosts supporters’ highlight being a first-half penalty save by keeper Tommy Rix from the Canaries’ Kieron Higgs.

That result followed a Clipbush Park defeat – in front of another good sized crowd – against the development squad of Premier League champions Leicester (7-0).

On both occasions, while the scoreline may suggest otherwise, Town put up a good fight that should stand them in good stead for the upcoming campaign.

The Ghosts’ other pre-season fixtures included a 4-1 defeat at Norwich CEYMS.