FA Women’s National League
Northern Premier Division
Burnley FC Women overcame a tricky obstacle in their title challenge when they defeated third placed Rugby Borough 5-0. The Clarets led by two goals at half time, via a double from Millie Ravening, who went on to complete her hat-trick early in the second half. Heidi Logan rounded off a great result for her club when she nettted twice in injury time.
Burnley therefore stay one point ahead of Wolverhampton Wanderers who went one better on the day, scoring six times without reply past Derby County. Louanne Worsey hit a first half hat-trick and she was joined on the scoresheet by Charlotte Greengrass and Amber Hughes, along with an own goal.
Stoke City have moved level on points with Rugby Borough after they edged out Liverpool Feds by the odd goal in five. Shannon Stamps gave Stoke an early lead and they went on to add further goals after the break through Delphi Cole and Evie Priestley, before the Feds launched a late comeback with strikes from Faye Coulthard and Seren Carrington.
Middlesbrough returned to winning ways with a 3-1 success against Loughborough Lightning. Emily Cassap, Armani Maxwell and Olivia Watt all netted a goal apiece for 'Boro, with Ella Jarowicki replying.
West Bromwich Albion are back in the top half of the table following their 1-0 win away to Halifax FC Women, Monique Robinson scoring the only goal of the game.
Hull City boosted their survival chances with a vital 2-1 victory over Sporting Khalsa. Megan Cann got Khalsa off to a great start when she put them ahead after six minutes but Hull levelled matters through Helen Lynskey and Grace Foyer completed wthe turnaround when she netted the winner, six minutes into the second half.
Southern Premier Division
Watford retained the leadership of the table with an emphatic victory against Billericay Town, who are destined to finish the season at the foot of the table. Madison Perry led the scoring with a five-goal haul whilst Coral-Jade Haines hit a hat-trick, and there was one apiece from Annie Rossiter, Megan Chandler, Flo Fyfe, Lucy Lyon and Poppy Wilson.
Plymouth Argyle stay one point behind in second place following a 2-0 win against in-form Lewes. The Rookettes went in to the match having won five of their previous six games but it was Argyle who took the points, Tamara Wilcock giving them a first half lead and Layla Proctor sealing the points in injury time.
AFC Bournemouth kept up their challenge by scoring six times without reply past Cheltenham Town. Jenna Markham and Georgia Wilson put the Cherries two goals ahead inside the opening twelve minutes, before Sophie Quirk bagged a hat-trick and an own goal completed the scoring.
Exeter City are looking set for a mid-table finish following their 1-0 success away to Hashtag Utd. Fearne Slocombe settled matters when she scored the only goal of the game, four minutes before half time.
Gwalia Utd gave their survival hopes a huge shot in the arm when they ran out 5-0 winners in a crucial clash against AFC Wimbledon, a result which lifts them above their opponents and out of the bottom two. Daisy Ackerman gave Gwalia a first half lead and Georgia Walters netted a goal in each half, with Manon Pearce also bagging a double.
Division One North
Huddersfield Town held on to the leadership of the table but were left frusrated as they were held to a goalless draw by Norton & Stockton Ancients, who produced one of their best results of the season to date.
Town's advantage has now been reduced to goal difference by Leeds Utd, who went level on points with them with a 3-1 victory away to Blackburn Rovers. Ellie Rice did give Blackburn the lead midway through the first half but after the break, Amy Woodruff levelled the scores and in injury time, Kathryn Smith put Leeds ahead for the first time and Woodruff netted her second to seal three valuable points for her side.
A five point gap has now opened up to Cheadle Town Stingers, who moved back into the top three by winning 2-1 at York City. Imogen Porteous-Williams and Jessica Gillin were both on target for Cheadle, whilst the MinsterBelles' reply came from Rosie Bell.
Durham Cestria have climbed up to fourth place on the back of a 3-2 success against Wythenshawe, who are now one place below them. Faye Dale netted twice and Lleucu Mathias the other as Durham made a quick return to winning form and dealt a blow to the title aspirations of the Cheshire side, who replied through Amy Pracy and Ciara Boylan.
Doncaster Rovers Belles staged a second half fightback to secure a valuable point from a 2-2 draw with Stockport County, which moves them to within a single point of safety. Emily Bradshaw looked to have sent Stockport on their way to victory with a first half brace but after the break, Maisie Everitt and Jasmine Saxton scored to give the Belles a boost in their fight for survival.
On Wednesday night, Leeds Utd went back to the top of the table by a single point after battling out a 1-1 draw with Doncaster Rovers Belles. Drew Greene gave Leeds the lead, with Abigail Coley hitting back to equalise for a point which takes the Belles out of the bottom two. Meanwhile, Cheadle Town Stingers are three points off the pace in third after a goal twelve minutes from time by Jessica Gillin gave them a 1-0 win over Stockport County.
Division One Midlands
Laura Cooper and Ridhi Ruparella scored the goals as Boldmere St Michaels remained on top of the table by a single point after winning 2-0 away to Notts County.
Peterborough Utd stay on their heels in second place, they ran out 7-2 winners over Worcester City. Kier Perkins, Niamh Connor and Kayleigh Hines all scored twice and Jessica Rousseau added the other for the Posh Women, whilst Worcester's replies came from Maia Clark and Annabel Sime.
Leafield Athletic kept their hopes for a top two place alive, thanks to a 2-0 success at Sutton Coldfield Town. Gwen Horgan put Leafield ahead with only two minutes on the clock and Lucy Davies added the second shortly afterwards.
Barnsley Women continue to head the chasing teams, they were 3-0 victors away to Kidderminster Harriers. Ocean Rolandsen gave them a first half lead and they went on to wrap up the win with further strikes after the interval from Freya Walton and Tanya Fozzard.
Sheffield FC maintained their chances of challenging for a top four place, thanks to a 1-0 victory against Northampton Town. Sheffield substitute Tilly Hallas-Potts was the heroine for her side as she scored the game's only goal, eight minutes from time.
Stourbridge rekindled their survival hopes and are only a single point from the safety zone after they defeated Lincoln Utd 4-0. Daisy-Mai Clements bagged a hat-trick for the Glassgirls and Tara Appleton weighed in with the other goal.
Division One South East
Fulham stay at the top of the table following their 3-1 victory against Chatham Town. Leeta Rutherford gave them a first half lead which was quickly cancelled out by Amelia Woodgate, before late strikes from Ellie Olds and Leila Lister secured another win for the leaders.
Norwich City meanwhile kept up the pressure by beating third placed London Bees 3-0. Holly Kennard, Grace Riglar and Natasha Snelling ensured that the Canaries are still one point behind Fulham, having played a game more.
Queen's Park Rangers were unable to make up ground on the top four as they were beaten 2-1 by Dulwich Hamlet. All of the goal action came late in the game, Leila Emmerson and Esme Johnson putting Hamlet two ahead wihin the last ten minutes and Rangers grabbed an injury time consolation through Lauren Amerena.
The spoils were shared at Luton Town where the home side shared four goals with Milton Keynes Dons. Natasha Fensome and Amy McLean were on target for Luton, whilst the Dons responded with a brace from Madeleine Pollard.
Chesham Utd picked up what was for them a welcome point when they battled out a 2-2 draw with Cambridge Utd, but it wasn't quite enough to take them off the bottom of the table. The U's raced into a two-goal lead in the first half, thanks to a double from Jade Bell, but after the break, Chesham battled back for a draw with Sharne Harris and Sophie Bishop on target.
Division One South West
For the second week running, the two title challengers boosted their cause with large victories and leaders Moneyfields stormed to a 10-2 victory against Worthing. Shannon Albuery continued her fine form by scoring five times and she was joined on the scoresheet by Brittany Jeal, Brooke Garcia, Tierney Scott, Sophia Pharoah and Rebekah Tonks, with Amber Hazlewood and Sophie Lee replying.
Swindon Town meanwhile scored eight times without reply past Keynsham Town to keep the gap at the top to one point. Annabelle Colston led the scoring with a four-goal haul and Tori St Clair contributed a late double, with Sky Bedwell and Sarah King also on target.
Bristol Rovers still look likely to secure a top three finish although they were held on Sunday to a 1-1 draw by Abingdon Utd. Kelly Highman gave Rovers a first half lead, which was cancelled out on the stroke of half time by Libby Gilmore.
Bridgwater Utd produced a clinical second half performance in a 6-0 victory away to Portishead Town. The first half ended goalless but eight minutes after the restart, Megan Jarvis put Bridgwater in front and the prolific striker went on to score a hat-trick whilst Beatriz Kretteis contributed a double and Aimee Kingdon was also on target. However the game was marred by a long first half stoppage for an injury sustained by Bridgwater defender Libby Gimson.
The mid-table battle between Ascot Utd and Maidenhead Utd finished with honours even and a 1-1 draw, Katie Akerman giving Maidenhead a lead which they held until deep into injury time, when Kate Fox earned Ascot a share of the spoils.
A dramatic late fightback saw Bournemouth Sports pick up a valuable point from a 2-2 draw with Marine Academy Plymouth. Marine took a first half lead through Kelsey Blight which was doubled after the break by Sam Drewery, but Rosie Eden and Kaitlyn Elliott both scored late on to ensure that Bridgwater went home with a share of the spoils.
Reserve Section round-up...
Northern Division leaders Stoke City were beaten for only the second time this season, going down 3-0 to Huddersfield Town. Daisy Botham (2), Maia Schonfelder and Ruby Webster were all on target for AFC Fylde in their 4-4 draw with Derby County, who replied through a Krystal Trinh double, Ebony Stubbs and Olivia Tomkins. Grace Jones netted twice along with Aurelia Burdett and Chloe Newens as Notts County ran out 4-1 winners over Hull City.
Ipswich Town are the new leaders of the Premier Division, following their 7-1 victory against Swindon Town. Dulcie King led the scoring with a five-goal haul and there was one apiece from Phoebe Love and Katie O'Shea. They replace Watford who went down to a 2-0 defeat against AFC Bournemouth, Hannah-Marie Clayton and Elin Starck scoring for the Cherries.
Tate Bullen netted twice along with Nina Scullion and Poppy Johnston-Smith as Rugby Borough defeated Bridgwater Utd 4-0 to go four points clear at the top of the Championship Division. Moneyfields meanwhile shared a 1-1 draw with Cheltenham Town, goals coming from Grace Jarrett and Charlie Donovan respectively.
