Hoddesdon Town set the pace as May & Baker loom at Lowfield

Seven straight competitive wins, a place in the FA Vase first round proper and top spot in Division One South: it has been quite a fortnight for Hoddesdon Town, and Saturday brings the sternest test yet of a start that has already turned heads across the Eastern Counties League. Simon Riddle's side welcome May & Baker EC to Lowfield with only a single point separating first and second, Hoddesdon on 19 points from seven league matches and the Bakers on 18 with a game in hand, both boasting a goal difference of plus 15.

The fixture arrives on the back of a memorable trip to Woodford Town in the FA Vase, where Hoddesdon overcame opposition from a level above thanks to a Jack Orchard header and a Connor Bolton strike. Blue Gallagher, whose free-kick set up the opener, was named Man of the Match for what Riddle called a phenomenal work-rate. "Beating a side from the level above away from home takes a complete team effort," the manager said afterwards. That victory sends Hoddesdon Town to Heybridge Swifts in the next round, a tie worth £825 to the winners, and carries extra resonance for a club that won the very first FA Vase final back in 1975.

At the other end of the pitch, Hoddesdon Town have conceded only four goals in eight completed competitive fixtures, with Bolton the chief attacking outlet on nine goals from nine appearances. Harrison Cage, Jack Gibbs and Freddie Wilkinson have all chipped in too, spreading the goalscoring load across the side.

May & Baker, though, arrive with the division's most eye-catching individual in Addae Paponette, credited with 15 goals from 11 appearances. The 20-year-old Trinidad and Tobago international previously trialled with Manchester United and Preston North End before a spell at Granada CF, and Riddle acknowledged the scale of the threat he poses: "Paponette's numbers speak for themselves, but May & Baker are clearly much more than one player." Support comes from Akiljo Balliu, Max Hart, Junayd Subhi, Zivonimir Lopes and Joao Silva Cruz, all among the scorers or assists this season.

Elsewhere in the division, Basildon Town progressed in the Essex Senior Cup with a 3-2 win at FC Stansted, having exited the FA Vase to Colney Heath the previous week, while Burnham Ramblers fought back from two goals down against Romford before losing to a late free-kick. Cannons Wood saw their FA Vase run end on penalties and their BBC Essex Senior Cup campaign end 1-0 at White Ensign, before turning attention to the League Challenge Cup. At Southend, Southend Manor exited both the Essex Senior Cup, beaten by Hullbridge Sports, and the FA Vase, losing on penalties to Holland, who remained unbeaten in the league with eight wins from eleven matches across all competitions.