Sunday March 7th
FA TESCO PREMIER LEAGUE NATIONAL DIVISION
Arsenal 4-1 Blackburn Rovers
Birmingham City 1-0 Millwall Lionesses
Leeds Carnegie 4-0 Bristol Academy
Watford 0-4 Everton
NORTHERN DIVISION
Curzon Ashton P-P Sheffield Wednesday
Manchester City 3-4 Leicester City WFC
Preston North End 9-3 Newcastle United
SOUTHERN DIVISION
Cardiff City 4-0 WFC Fulham
Charlton Athletic 0-0 Brighton & Hove Albion
Arsenal won 4-1 over Blackburn to go within a point of leaders Sunderland and still with five games still in hand. But Rovers held them to 1-1 at the interval, after Rhiannon Roberts cancelled out her 13th minute own-goal on half-time. Gemma Davison restored the Gunners' lead just short of the hour, Danielle Carter made it 3-1 5 minutes later and Jayne Ludlow wrapped up the scoring on 79 minutes.
Leeds Carnegie are up to third after scoring four late goals against Bristol Academy. It took a 77th minute Sue Smith penalty to break the deadlock, with Rachel Daly doubling the lead a minute later. Carla Cantrell then bagged a very late brace to confirm a fourth straight home win.
Everton scored four times in a 15-minute spell to record a 4-0 win at Watford. Gwennan Harries got the ball rolling on 35 minutes, Natasha Dowie making it 2-0 at half-time. Harries hit her second on 46 minutes and Jill Scott finished the scoring with 40 minutes still remaining.
Birmingham City defeated Millwall to edge into ninth place in the table. Isobel Christiansen netted the only goal of the game, 9 minutes before half-time.
In the Northern Division, Preston posted an astounding 9-3 victory over Newcastle United, whom they now trail by just two points. Gemma Watson opened the scoring with the first of her hat-trick, with Hannah Bailey, Victoria Charnley, and a second from Watson following, before Beth Gardner replied to make it 4-1 by half-time.
Watson's third was followed by a Sam Cadwallader brace, while Bailey also bagged a second and Alison Taberner got on the scoresheet too. Rachel Furness and Melanie Reay pulled goals back for the visitors.
Leicester City won at Manchester City, with the best of seven goals, to enhance their second place. These two sides dished up a pulsating match, with some stunning goals. The Foxes raced into a 0-2 lead through a fine chipped goal from Hannah Smith on 15 minutes and a Vicky Gallagher header on 20 minutes from a Natasha Meade corner. The home side pulled one back on 25 minutes, with a powerful free-kick by Charlotte Farrell but Gallagher added her second to go into the interval 1-3 up.
The second period didn't disappoint, it was fast and furious. The Foxes' Natasha Meade hit an unstoppable shot from 35 yards out to put them 1-4 up on 51 minutes but the Citizens weren't finished, when Farrell hit two more stunning free-kicks on 57 & 80 minutes to complete a rare dead-ball treble.
Cardiff City were the only Southern Division side to find the net, four times at home to Fulham. Danielle Broadhurst was first on target, Terri Beddows scored either side of half-time, with Nicola Cousins adding the fourth.
Charlton Athletic stay tenth after playing out a goalless draw with sixth-placed Brighton.
Top Goalscorers
NATIONAL DIVISION
Kim Little (Arsenal) 13
Gemma Davison (Arsenal) 9
Carla Cantrell (Leeds Carnegie) 8
Ellen White (Leeds Carnegie) 8
Natasha Dowie (Everton) 8
Vicky Exley (Doncaster Rovers Belles) 8
NORTHERN DIVISION
Cheryl Foster (Liverpool) 15
Stacey Crooks (Newcastle Utd) 14
Courtney Sweetman-Kirk (Leicester City) 12
Gemma Watson (Preston) 11
SOUTHERN DIVISION
Cherelle Albert (QPR) 13
Beth Curtis (QPR) 10
Kayleigh Sage (Keynsham Town) 10
