Fakenham Town's first league win of the season at the weekend was just the boost they needed ahead of Saturday's home fourth round Norfolk Senior Cup tie with Loddon United, who dumped them out of the competition last season.

Fakenham Town's first league win of the season at the weekend was just the boost they needed ahead of Saturday's home fourth round Norfolk Senior Cup tie with Loddon United, who dumped them out of the competition last season. Kick-off is 3pm.

Another boost for the Ghosts, who have seen some players leave Clipbush Park, is striker Karl Pask's decision to stay with the club, despite an approach from his former club, Thetford Town. Joint managers Stuart Woodhouse and Mark King were delighted at such a vote of confidence in Fakenham Town FC.

Fakenham Town 4, Long Melford 0

The Ghosts' managers admitted they would have settled for a scrambled 1-0 win against their fourth-bottom visitors. In the event they got what Woodhouse described as “a good win from a good performance.”

Even without Pask, who was at a wedding, Fakenham buried four good chances and could have doubled their total, although keeper Daniel Stockdale underlined a No 1-to-No 11 team per-formance with a couple of vital stops.

“We ran them ragged second half,” enthused Woodhouse. “The two wide boys played really well. Mark Betts had a terrific second half and Jason Day had a great match.

“When the third goal went in you could see the difference in the players, they could see they were going to win a game.”

Victory lifted the Ghosts off bottom spot in Ridgeons Division One, a place now occupied by Swaffham. With four points from 14 games, they still have work to do to catch Downham (10 points from 15) and Long Melford (11 from 15), but this could be the turning point of the season.

In a tentative start, Stockdale made a good save from a Danny Brind effort while Day had the Melford keeper going to his right to save. Fakenham upped the pace after 25 minutes. Nick Tagg saw his goalbound header well saved, a free-kick was just off target, Betts threatened with a surging run and James Bamford chanced his arm from long range. Stockdale saved well at the other end.

The first goal came on 38 minutes, Nick Haynes heading home Jason Cole's left-wing cross.

Betts was on fire down the left second half, involved in most of Fakenham's positive attacking play. He set up Haynes, who slipped as he was about to pull the trigger, but on the hour the gates to goal swung open.

Hooks pulled the ball back to the edge of the area for Day to crack home a rocket, good work from Betts saw Mark Critten grab the third goal in the 65th minute and Matty Hooks put the icing on the cake with a far-post volley from a right-wing cross just before time.

Fakenham Town: Stockdale, Fenwick (70 B Woodhouse), Cole, Tagg, A Woodhouse, Day, Critten, Bamford, Haynes, Betts, Hooks. Subs not used: Raisbury, Whittred, King.

Fakenham Reserves suffered a 3-1 reverse at Oulton Broad while the A team lost 2-0 at Beetley.