The South West Phoenix Firebirds dropped their first points of the season in a 4-3 loss at Queens Park on Sunday.
A pulsating match saw the Firebirds recover to lead twice, having gone behind early. Two goals in the final 20 minutes gave Queens Park a well-deserved win.
Queens Park's team sheet signalled the difficulty the Firebirds were likely to encounter.
Former Matilda Collette McCallum, former Perth Glory striker Stacey Learmont, and 2018 Premier League-winning captain Nicole Campbell all featured in a starting line-up packed with experience and quality.
Against them was the youngest team in the competition, who had started the season with six wins.
Queens Park dominated early proceedings with sharp passing and smart movement, rattling the Firebirds who struggled to get out of their half at times.
It was no real surprise when Queens Park took the lead, twenty five minutes in. The class of McCallum shone through when she finished a fine passing move with a powerful left-foot shot from the edge of the box.
The Firebirds were being outplayed, but a tactical switch saw them turn the game around for the final 15 minutes of the first half.
During this time, captain Lucy Scott equalised for the Firebirds when she intercepted a pass and coolly slotted past Kristy Teschinsky to make it 1-1 at the break.
The Firebirds got back into the game in the latter stages of the second half. When Eleanor Coventry fired in a powerful shot to put the Firebirds 2-1 up, it looked as though they may go on with the job.
However, Queens Park always had the quality to cause problems and were level within a few minutes when they bundled the ball home from close range.
Coventry again put Firebirds 3-2 up when she scored with a kick from just outside the box.
Katie McDermott had a great chance minutes later to make it 4-2, but her effort was well saved.
From there, Queens Park launched a counter attack which led to them again getting back on level terms.
They again scored from close range - this time following a McCallum free kick, as she continued to cause havoc from every dead ball situation.
Queens Park saved their best for last with a passing move from one end to the other involving several consecutive first time passes. Learmont went on to score from just inside the box.
One last chance fell to Coventry as she was one-on-one, but her effort was well saved and Firebirds suffered their first loss of the season.
Queens Park had too much experience and quality across the pitch, although the result could have gone either way.
Next up, the Firebirds travel to Joondalup for a previously postponed fixture. A win will move them top of the table for the first time this season.
