Fakenham Town will be a competitive football unit in the coming season.With encouraging numbers attending training sessions at Clipbush Park and players signing for both Ridgeons League and Anglian Combination, the management team should see a healthy competition for places.

Fakenham Town will be a competitive football unit in the coming season.

With encouraging numbers attending training sessions at Clipbush Park and players signing for both Ridgeons League and Anglian Combination, the management team should see a healthy competition for places.

“Competition for places is paramount,” said joint first team manager Mark King over the weekend. “In the coming season we think we should be able to compete with almost any team in the Ridgeons Division One, whereas last season we were always playing catch-up.”

He, fellow first team boss Stuart Woodhouse and new Fakenham Reserves manager Asa Saunders have been analysing the tail end of last season, when the Ridgeons side hit form after a disastrous start, and the current situation.

“It's going nicely,” said King. “One very good thing is that we must have 21 or 22 players who have signed Ridgeons League forms whereas last season we had 13 or 14. And they have signed for the Anglian Combination.”

With the reserves dropping back into Division Two, they now have the double incentive of being capable of gaining promotion and having a good run in the Norfolk Junior Cup. “We will be able to concentrate on a good season for the reserves as well as the first team, where last season the first team demanded most resources,” said King.

With players available for both leagues, it will give players the chance to rise to a higher level as well as keeping first team players on their toes.

This is in stark contrast to this time last year when only a handful of players turned up for the first training session and new managers had to be found in the run-up to the start of the season.

Attendances at Tuesday and Thursday sessions, 7pm, are averaging in the high thirties, said King.

The first warm-up match ended in a 2-1 defeat by North Walsham, but several players were unavailable because of holidays and work. On Saturday, Fakenham host two teams from a touring side from Blackpool, the U16s kicking off at 2pm and the main squad at 4pm.

Tuesday, July 22 sees King's Lynn at Clipbush Park 7.45pm, followed by Sheringham on July 29 (7.30pm).