With all sides bar Capital – who are sitting out the action with a pair of byes – playing twice, the Labour weekend period could well prove season-defining for many and there was certainly plenty at stake as Central met Loaded WaiBOP in Palmerston North.

Both teams were still to post any points and were fully aware this clash provided their best chance yet of doing so. It looked like they would both be able to get something on the board as the clocked ticked into additional time with the score locked at nil-all but Central were not about to let a potential three points slip through their grasp.

With just seconds to go, a long pass was lofted over the top of the WaiBOP defence for Charlotte Lancaster to burst onto and she kept her composure well to fire an unstoppable strike past goalkeeper Georgia Candy.

It was a cruel blow for WaiBOP as an evenly-fought contest could have gone either way and, to make matters worse, it came after suffering a similar fate a week earlier in conceding a last-gasp winner to Capital.

For Central though, the long-awaited win was a reward for the character they have shown in not letting a series of heavy defeats break their spirit and they will now tackle the rest of the season with renewed optimism. Aside from the victory and just their second goal of the campaign, the coaching staff would have been especially pleased to record a clean sheet as Central had already conceded over 30 times in their five matches.

WaiBOP has the chance to right matters, to some extent, on Monday when both sides play again at the same venue.

WaiBOP Football 0-1 Central Football 1 (ht: 0-0)
WBP: none.
CEN: Charlotte Lancaster.

WaiBOP Squad: 1. Georgia Candy, 3. Kate Williams, 4. Olivia Hooper (8. Stella Neems), 5. Chloe Henderson (15. Grace Cox), 7. Emma Cawte, 9. Helen Talbot, 12. Kelli Brown, 13. Tiana Hill, 16. Grace Wisnewski, 19. Ashley Weld, 20. Chelsea Elliott. Subs (not used): 21. Rylee Godbold, 6. Jayden Watts, 14. Richlyn Tuhoro.

Photo: PhotoSport.