WSL roundup: Sam Kerr sparkles in Chelsea rout, Man City keep title race alive & Leicester win Championship

We're into the final stretch of the WSL season now, and things are getting tense at both ends of the table.

This weekend we've seen potentially decisive results in the battle to avoid relegation as well as the quest for glory at the top end, while we also learned who will be joining the top flight next season, as Leicester clinched the Women's Championship with three games to spare.

The fun kicked off on Saturday afternoon when West Ham popped up with one of the weekend's shock results. The Irons, embroiled in a relegation scrap, took on a Reading team sitting safe in mid-table, and breathed fire into their survival hopes with a stunning 5-0 win.

Kenza Dali, Katerina Svitkova and Martha Thomas had them 3-0 to the good within 11 minutes, before two further strikes from Thomas - both before half-time - completed a comprehensive win.

But she wasn't the only hat-trick hero of the weekend. Leaders Chelsea picked up a resounding win of their own, and they were inspired by the prolific Sam Kerr, whose first half treble got them on their way to a 6-0 win over Birmingham that strengthened their title credentials.

With Chelsea laying a marker down, Manchester City had to respond, especially with the two facing in a title showdown later this month. And they did just that. City, still stinging from their Champions League exit at the hands of Barcelona, took out their frustrations on Tottenham as Caroline Weir capped off a comfortable 3-0 win.

Arsenal's hopes of winning the trophy have been dead in the water for some time, but they received a shot in the arm in their quest for third as Vivienne Miedema inspired them to a thumping 4-0 win over Bristol City.

Things got even better for the Gunners with the news of Brighton's win over Manchester United, allowing the Gunners to leap-frog them in the standings.

Elsewhere there was a routine win for Everton over Aston Villa, who are now rooted to the bottom of the table - albeit having played two games fewer than Bristol ahead of them.

Whoever goes down, though, will be replaced by Leicester. The Foxes will play WSL football for the first time in their history, as a 2-0 win over London City made sure of their status as champions.

The next full round of WSL fixtures kicks off on Saturday 24 April.

Mark your diaries for Sunday 25th - Manchester City vs Chelsea, with the fate of the title at stake.