Olympic Kingsway refused to die and Liam Boland made sure of it

Three times Olympic Kingsway fell behind and three times Liam Boland answered in NPL WA.

One of Australian state league football's greatest goalscorers once again proved the difference, scoring a hat-trick to inspire Olympic Kingsway to a remarkable 5-4 comeback victory over Balcatta Etna - a result that kept their title challenge firmly alive.

The veteran has built a career on delivering in the biggest moments. He remains the all-time leading goalscorer in Australia Cup history, famously tormenting A-League opposition with nine goals in five matches despite never receiving a genuine opportunity in the top flight.

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His journey has also taken him through Victoria, where he became the first player to score 100 goals in the NPL Victoria era after prolific spells with Green Gully, Hume City and Avondale before eventually returning west.

On Saturday, Boland added another chapter.

He twice cancelled out Balcatta leads in a frantic opening half before completing his hat-trick with 13 minutes remaining to level the scores at 4-4. Moments later, Bryce Bafford struck in stoppage time to complete an extraordinary comeback and secure one of the games of the NPL WA season.

The victory leaves Olympic Kingsway three points behind league leaders Bayswater City with a game in hand.

Bayswater returned to the summit on Friday night courtesy of a commanding 3-0 victory over Perth RedStar in a heavyweight clash.

After Coby Sutton broke the deadlock for the third consecutive game, Cameron Teece struck twice late to hand RedStar their first league defeat in nine matches and move the reigning champions two points clear at the top, albeit having played a game more.

Perth Azzurri also remain firmly in the hunt after Pieter Jacobsz's hat-trick inspired a 4-1 victory over Armadale, extending the club's unbeaten run to eight matches.

Elsewhere, Fremantle City made it three wins on the bounce with a 3-0 success over Western Knights, Stirling Macedonia were held to a 1-1 draw by Perth Glory, while Dianella White Eagles boosted their survival hopes by coming from behind to defeat Sorrento 2-1.