Melville United scored a stirring, come-from-behind 4-3 win over Franklin United at the Drury Sports Complex on the last Sunday in May, Maia Oxenham bagging an injury time winner after the visitors found themselves trailing with five minutes left to play. It was a lively encounter throughout, with Sarah Carpenter and Melville's Laura Bennett exchanging goals inside the first ten minutes. Britney Cunningham-Lee restored Franklin's lead seven minutes before half-time, but right on the stroke of the interval, Bennett levelled the scores once more. With twenty minutes left, Franklin took the lead for the third time, Becky Hawker this time the markswoman, and it remained that way until three minutes from time, when Freya Douglas drew Melville level yet again. The momentum that goal gave the league leaders was crucial, as Oxenham's stoppage time winner proved - Melville at the death, 4-3. Nearest challengers Onehunga Sports remain three points behind after a hard-earned 2-0 win over Central United in their Central Auckland derby at Waikaraka Park. "The Green Machine" dominated proceedings, but it required a striker's goal from Sophie Stevenson to overcome United's resolute defensive efforts, her super strike from an acute angle with two defenders on her crashing into the roof of the net just after the half-hour mark. Pip Meo was brilliantly denied by Rose Meleisea soon afterwards, before Central squandered a glorious chance to equalise in the 37th minute, Wallis Bland firing wide from eight yards after being gifted the ball by Taylor Bell with Sports' defence in a right royal state of disorganised chaos! Stevenson and Meo both spurned chances to seal the points during the second spell, while an Olivia Matsas shot hit the post before a clumsily conceded penalty was despatched with aplomb by Kate Inwood in stoppage time. Over the bridge which crosses the world's eighth biggest harbour, Onehunga-Mangere United, who were promoted at the eleventh hour after the season-eve withdrawal of Hamilton Wanderers, look almost certain to return from whence they came after Northern Rovers scored a come-from-behind 3-1 win over "The Scarlets" at Mangere Domain. Steph Jones gave OMU the lead halfway through

the first spell, but whatever concoction Craig Alexander and Billy Harris slipped into Rovers' half-time tonic should be bottled and preserved, as goals from Michele Hogg and Izzy Lomax turned things round within nine minutes of the resumption of play. Lauren Smyth clinched victory for the visitors eighteen minutes from time to leave OMU with just a point to their name after eight rounds, and in need of at least two wins to have any hope of avoiding relegation. It was a good day all round for the North Harbour clubs, with Birkenhead United battering Cambridge 4-1 at Shepherds Park, led by another two-goal haul from Grace Chitty, her double materialising after recent signing Emily Gillion and Nicola O'Leary had given the home team a two-goal buffer inside fifteen minutes. Sophie Williams scored straight from the kick-off in the second spell, but Chitty's second strike snuffed out any hopes of a comeback by the visitors, who are in a three-way go for fifth spot, four points behind their conquerors, who are hard on the heels of third-placed Franklin. League action takes a break on King's Birthday weekend, but Delivereasy Kate Sheppard Cup action is scheduled, and the all-Championship tie between Franklin and Birkenhead at the Drury Sports Complex on Saturday has plenty riding on it. Other ties involving Championship sides see Sports making a Saturday journey to Premier Women's League strugglers Tauranga Moana, who won the Championship so convincingly last season. Cambridge also face Premier League opposition, a road trip to Eastern Suburbs on Monday their fate. Twenty-fours earlier, OMU welcome Lakes FC to Mangere Domain. Details: Birkenhead United 4 (E. Gillion (11), N. O'Leary (15), G. Chitty (23, 56)), Cambridge 1 (S. Williams (46))  HT 3-0 Franklin United 3 (S. Carpenter (2), B. Cunningham-Lee (38), B. Hawker (69)), Melville United 4 (L. Bennett (10, 45), F. Douglas (87), M. Oxenham (90))  HT 2-2 Onehunga-Mangere United 1 (S. Jones (24)), Northern Rovers 3 (M. Hogg (47), I. Lomax (54), L. Smyth (72))  HT 1-0 Onehunga Sports 2 (S. Stevenson (32), K. Inwood (90 pen)), Central United 0  HT 1-0