Canberra United's hopes to make the top four in the A-League Women are still alive after Football Australia overturned a points deduction they copped for a policy breach last month.
United was punished by the Australian Professional Leagues (APL) for making a substitution outside the game's three permitted windows during their home win over Sydney FC on February 11.
As a result, their 2-1 victory — with a late winner scored by retiring Canberra legend Ellie Brush — was turned into a 3-0 loss, handing three points and an improved goal difference to the Sky Blues, which bumped them to the top of the ALW ladder.
Canberra stayed in fifth place but was soon overtaken by a resurgent Perth Glory, which dropped it to sixth.
However, the club immediately appealed the ruling to Football Australia, which retains power as the regulator of the A-Leagues. The basis of the appeal rested on communication from the match officials on the day, with head coach Njegosh Popovich saying his side was "only guilty of following the direction of the referees".
The only circumstance in which a substitution can be made outside the three windows is in the case of a concussed player.
ABC understands the fourth official misunderstood the rule in allowing an extra substitution for a non-head injury. Full-back Hayley Taylor-Young came off in the 47th minute with a bloodied nose but was cleared of concussion during the half-time break.
FA's independent Disciplinary and Ethics Committee overturned the punishment after a meeting on Thursday night, siding with Canberra in concluding that the match official made an error on the day.
"The committee found in favour of the club, ordering that the APL determination to impose a forfeit and loss of competition points on the club be set aside and that the original result of the match be reinstated," FA said in a statement.
The APL can appeal FA's ruling within seven days.
The outcome means Canberra United moves to fifth on the ladder, just two points behind fourth-placed Melbourne Victory, while the gap between Sydney FC in second and Western United in first widens to five points instead of two.
However, the club still has plenty to do to qualify for finals, travelling to take on Western on Saturday before finishing its regular season against third-placed Melbourne City.
Sydney, meanwhile, has three games remaining against Adelaide, Perth, and Newcastle, while Western close out its season against Canberra and the Wanderers as the top two clubs battle it out for the Premiership plate.
The finals series will be spread across three weeks, with the semi-finals starting on the weekend of April 15-16. A preliminary final will take place on the 22nd, while the grand final — which will be held in Sydney regardless of the teams that qualify — will kick off on April 30.
