The West Canberra Wanderers walked away with three points but an injury to one of their key players dampened the mood.
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The home side opened the scoring at Melrose Synthetic nine minutes into the 3-1 contest against Gungahlin United.
Hattie Cram was the first to strike, as her speed again caused headaches for opposing defenders.
A long clearance kick from the Wanderers' defence was met by Gungahlin's goalkeeper, Sarah Corbett, who tried to send it back.
It took an awkward bounce near the 18-yard and became a foot race between Cram and United's defence.
Next it was Tara Cannon.
The midfielder found herself unmarked about 25 metres out and fired off the goal of the round with her right boot.
She gave Corbett no chance, as it snuck in under the crossbar to make it 2-0.
Wanderers coach Rey Castro confirmed Cannon would likely face a few weeks on the sideline with a suspected fractured rib.
"She has this beautiful shot and she put one away today. I think it is the highlight of the week," he said.
"We were rushing it a little bit in the first half, and we were not making the best decisions up front, but we fixed it a little bit for the second half."
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The visitors clawed one back soon after, thanks to Sharon Chao.
The number 10's run off a throw in was not tracked, and she made the Wanderers pay with a screamer from the edge of the box to make it 2-1.
Cram secured the three points for her side in the 82nd minute.
A slide tackle from Gungahlin's Annaliese Grove could not stop the young striker's effort, as the Wanderers had the final say and made it 3-1.
NPL round 8 results
NPL men's
- O'Connor Knights bt West Canberra Wanderers 4-3
- Monaro Panthers bt Belconnen United 6-0
- Gungahlin United bt Tigers FC 5-1
- Canberra Croatia bt Canberra Olympic 2-1
NPL women's
- West Canberra Wanderers bt Gungahlin United 3-1
- Belconnen United bt Tuggeranong United 6-1
- Canberra Olympic bt Wagga City Wanderers 7-1
Isobel Cootes
Sports reporter at The Canberra Times. A Novocastrian with a passion for football (or soccer as they call it in the capital) via The Examiner and The Port Lincoln Times.
Sports reporter at The Canberra Times. A Novocastrian with a passion for football (or soccer as they call it in the capital) via The Examiner and The Port Lincoln Times.
