Chelsea were given a major scare before booking a spot in the FA Cup fifth round as the defending champions came from behind to seal a 3-1 victory over West Ham after extra time.
Viviane Asseyi gave the Hammers a shock lead after 18 minutes and Rehanne Skinner’s side, who have won just once in the Women’s Super League this season, looked unflustered for large spells at Kingsmeadow.
An early exit looked to be beckoning for the Blues, but Mia Fishel drew the hosts level with 20 minutes remaining to keep alive their hopes of winning the competition for the fourth year in a row.
Erin Cuthbert and Sjoeke Nusken netted in the first half of extra time as Chelsea avoided an upset but their struggles in Sam Kerr’s injury-enforced absence will not have gone unnoticed by their rivals.
There was no such drama for Manchester United as last season’s beaten finalists routed Newcastle 5-0 at Leigh, where Nikita Parris struck in either half to subdue a sizeable travelling contingent.
Third-tier Newcastle headed into this fixture on the back of a 30-game unbeaten streak – their last loss was in December 2022 – but the Red Devils’ class told as Ella Toone opened the scoring.
Parris then bagged a brace before substitutes Rachel Williams and Melvine Malard added gloss to the scoreline to emphasise the gulf in quality between these two teams.
Arsenal were similarly untroubled as goals from Alessia Russo, Lia Walti and Stina Blackstenius put them on the path to a 5-1 victory over Watford.
Seventeen-year-old Michelle Agyemang, who joined Watford on a dual-sign agreement from Arsenal last year, pulled one back, but Amanda Ilestedt and Frida Maanum wrapped up a comfortable win for the Gunners.
Their only concern centred on Beth Mead needing treatment on her right leg at full-time but the England forward was able to walk off the field.
Manchester City brushed aside Durham 4-0 thanks to a double from Jill Roord after Laura Coombs had broken the deadlock early on, with Mary Fowler completing the scoring in the closing stages.
WSL side Tottenham fought from 2-0 down to beat Championship outfit Sheffield United 3-2, with Rosella Ayane scoring the winner in the sixth minute of stoppage time.
Liverpool left it late to beat WSL basement team Bristol City as Gemma Bonner struck five minutes from time to secure a 1-0 win, with the Reds down to 10 for the final half hour as Ceri Holland was dismissed.
Karoline Olesen’s opener and Katja Snoeijs’ double helped Everton to a 3-0 victory over fellow WSL opponents Aston Villa.
Fifth-tier Luton were the lowest-ranked team to reach this stage but were unceremoniously dumped out after a 6-0 thumping by top-flight Brighton, who scored four times in the final half-hour.
Crystal Palace scored three times in the final quarter of an hour to come from behind and defeat Blackburn 3-1, Southampton won 2-0 at Sunderland and Nottingham Forest thrashed Plymouth 6-1.
Charlton came from a goal down to thump Ipswich 4-1, Birmingham won 3-1 at Burnley after extra time and Wolves edged Reading 2-1.
Leicester and London City Lionesses made sure of their spots in Monday night’s fifth-round draw with 4-0 wins over Derby and Moneyfields respectively.
