Eastern Suburbs and Western Springs put themselves in the box seats to join Auckland United and West Coast Rangers in this year's National Women's League after recording decisive victories on the road at the expenses of fellow top-four contenders in fifteenth round action in the Lotto Northern Premier Women's League in the penultimate weekend in July. "The Lilywhites" were swiftly out of the blocks at Riverhills Park, where two Sofia Garcia goals - the second following a superb Kenya Brooke cross which had Caelan Tremain in all sorts of trouble - in the first fifteen minutes effectively settled their clash with Fencibles United, who fought their way back into the contest well, and went close to halving the deficit early in the second spell when the ball of energy who is Mikaela Bangalan headed narrowly over. But Suburbs always had that little bit extra, and should have won by more than the 3-0 scoreline they ultimately recorded. Vicky Neuefeind squandered two glorious opportunities - the second after a sublime defence-splitting pass from Garcia - to increase a lead which was eventually bolstered by Ella Findlay heading home a Taylor Anderson corner eight minutes from time. That Friday night affair was followed on Saturday afternoon by a genuine six-pointer at Michaels Avenue, with Ellerslie trailing Western Springs by four points prior to kick off in a closely fought contest which saw "The Hoops" dominating possession before the interval, only to find "The Ponies" in immovable object mode - little wonder the half-time scoreline was scoreless. It very nearly wasn't, however, with Maddi Ollington going close from distance on the half-hour in a game in which the home team really needed to score first - in truth, this was a contest they couldn't afford to lose. But they did, 3-1 in the end, Springs' opening goal coming in the 57th minute when time seemed to stop momentarily, with most players expecting referee Boaz Peach to blow his whistle for a foul. One player kept going, however, and Kitty Jacob gained due reward by rifling home a crucial strike which proved pivotal in the contest. Ellerslie coach Ryan Shiffman has seen his team suffer some shocking refereeing decisions in the past couple of weeks, and his fury in response to this non-call earned him a yellow card. But regardless of any referee's interpretations re on-field incidents, one of the golden rules you're taught when you first play the game still applies all these years later - play to the whistle. Jacob did - 1-0. Ten minutes later, and after Charli Dunn had applied a defender's finish to a great scoring opportunity, Springs doubled their advantage, Nanami Omasa volleying home from an uncleared

Arisa Takeda corner. And when Liz Savage slammed home a penalty soon after being brilliantly denied by a back-pedalling Petra Wedlake, the game was up for the home team. Anita Trudgen afforded "The Ponies" late hope when pulling one back five minutes from time, but the fifth-placed team are now seven points adrift of their fourth-placed conquerors, and with six rounds remaining, that gap may well prove insurmountable. This was the round in which the top two teams confirmed their involvement in the National Women's League later in the year. West Coast recorded all their goals in the first half as they comfortably accounted for Hibiscus Coast, with Emily Lyon and Shannon Henson netting a quick-fire double before early substitute Taylor Vujnovich - on for Lyon  after thirty minutes - and Minji Yun wrapped up a 4-0 win at Fred Taylor Park. Reigning champions Auckland went one better at Tauranga Moana, with Alexis Cook netting two in three minutes around the quarter hour mark. Chloe Knott and Zoe Benson struck at regular intervals thereafter, before Greer MacIntosh concluded the scoring early in the second half as United afforded Penny Brill a 5-0 farewell as she heads to Xavier College in the USA. All teams will have played fifteen games following the conclusion of Wednesday evening's rescheduled encounter between "The Coasters" and "The Lilywhites" on the NHS Tigerturf, while a change in the fixtures list, arising from the semi-final draw in the Delivereasy Kate Sheppard Cup, has seen a couple of rounds swapped, with this weekend's scheduled different to that previously advertised. The top two meet on Friday night at Fred Taylor Park - Rebecca Burrows could be in line for a debut for Rangers with United having added Ava Collins to their ranks during the week - while Sunday's fare sees Suburbs welcoming Tauranga to Madills Farm on a day Springs head to Stanmore Bay Reserve to take on "The Coasters". Across town at Riverhills Park, Fencibles and Ellerslie lock horns in a game which will decide the outcome of the season for at least one of these sides, perhaps both, as a draw serves neither team well with games running out. Details: Ellerslie 1 (A. Trudgen (85)), Western Springs 3 (K. Jacob (57), N. Omasa (68), L. Savage (73 pen))  HT 0-0 Fencibles United 0, Eastern Suburbs 3 (S. Garcia (11, 15), E. Findlay (82))  HT 0-2 Tauranga Moana 0, Auckland United 5 (A. Cook (14, 17), C. Knott (26), Z. Benson (37), G. MacIntosh (51))  HT 0-4 West Coast Rangers 4 (E. Lyon (9), S. Henson (11), T. Vujnovich (37), M. Yun (45)), Hibiscus Coast 0  HT 4-0