Manchester United thrashed rivals Liverpool in a goal-laden day of WSL action which included high-stakes matches at both ends of the table.
Chelsea, Manchester City and Arsenal also continued their impressive form with comfortable wins over Brighton, Leicester and Aston Villa respectively.
Elsewhere, West Ham completed a thrilling turnaround to defeat London rivals Crystal Palace while Tottenham left it late to win at home to Everton.
United earn derby-day spoils
Manchester United secured bragging rights over bitter rivals Liverpool with an emphatic 4-0 win at Leigh Sports Village.
Two first-half goals in as many minutes from Elisabeth Terland and Leah Galton put the Red Devils in control before Dominique Janssen and Melvine Malard completed the rout.
United move up to third as a result, while injury-hit Liverpool stay seventh.
Chelsea keep winning streak alive
Sonia Bompastor’s perfect Chelsea record continued as the Blues weathered a Brighton fightback to triumph 4-2 at Kingsmeadow.
First-half finishes from Sjoeke Nusken and Aggie Beever-Jones put the league leaders in the driving seat but Jelena Cankovic gave the Seagulls hope on the stroke of half time.
Johanna Rytting Kaneryd restored the two-goal cushion but Kiko Seike capitalised on sloppy play at the back for the Blues to reduce the deficit.
However, Nusken’s late header fizzled out any hope of a memorable point on the road for fifth-placed Brighton.
Hammers secure crucial three points
West Ham came back from two goals down to secure a crucial 5-2 win over London rivals Crystal Palace, moving three points clear of the relegation zone in the process.
In a frantic opening 20 minutes, Palace struck twice through Mille Gejl and Indiah-Paige Riley, but Viviane Asseyi pulled one back for the hosts.
Late first-half goals from Seraina Piubel and Manuela Pavi completed the turnaround before Anouk Denton and Katrina Gorry guaranteed all three points late on to move the Hammers up to eighth while Palace remained bottom.
Gunners breeze past Villa
Renee Slegers’ Arsenal resurgence continued with a comfortable 4-0 win against Aston Villa at the Emirates.
Alessia Russo scored in her fourth straight match before Beth Mead doubled Arsenal’s advantage.
Stina Blackstenius’s goal and Russo’s second capped off a strong all-round Arsenal performance to move them third on goal difference while Villa dropped to ninth.
Shaw stars as City keep the pressure at the top
Khadija Shaw displayed her brilliance once more as she helped Manchester City cruise to a 4-0 victory over Leicester.
The Jamaican struck twice in the first half an hour for second-placed City to bring her tally up to seven WSL goals this season.
Jess Park and Mary Fowler also got onto the scoresheet early in the second half, as the Foxes fell to 11th, only above the relegation zone on goal difference.
Spurs bounce back with late win
Tottenham responded to back-to-back losses in perfect fashion thanks to a 2-1 win against Everton.
Bethany England headed home midway through the first half to put the hosts in control but Sara Holmgaard bit back with a thunderous strike from outside the box.
However, England netted from the spot in the second half to secure all three points to move Spurs up to sixth.
It was a valiant effort from the Toffees but the defeat leaves them 10th, just one point clear of the drop-zone.
