Something so uncommon it's hard to believe it even happened. Where one would have hoped the Women's game would have grown, this situation shows exactly what is still to come. Crystal Palace won their opening WSL victory against Everton 1-0, but they are now under investigation for breaching the league's substitution rules. This isn't because they made too many subs, but because of a rule that isn't spoken about much: they made too many opportunities to sub. They had four windows, while the wsl only allows a maximum of three, though changes made at half-time are treated differently and do not count as one of the three active-play windows allowed.
This raises the question: what was the fourth official doing? And should the responsibility be on them? This incident fuels growing anger in the league about match official professionalism and training, and how they have not had the level of training needed to manage the big fixtures they do.
While the goal came in the first half and they led for most of the game before this fourth substitution opportunity occurred, it likely did not affect the result; it would be impossible to say for certain, though.
Manager Jo Potter sent on Kirsty Howat for Shannon O'Brien in the seventh minute of eight minutes of added time. This illegal substitution breached the rules. But how did it even happen in the first place?
The WSL has confirmed it will investigate the incident involving Palace, Everton and Pro Ref, the organisation responsible for refereeing in the competition.
Referee Megan Wilson and her team should have known that Palace had already exhausted their three substitution opportunities.
The Athletic has reported that the officials, including Wilson, have subsequently been stood down from the next round of fixtures.
That means the investigation is not simply about what Palace did.
The real question is who is to blame and who will take responsibility and punishment for what has occurred: the club or the officials. What punishment should it be? Some fans suggest a reversal of the points, meaning Everton get the three, not Palace, but I feel that would be a great injustice to the players who worked hard for them over 90+ minutes for something that was not their fault.
From Palace's perspective, it could be argued that the substitution was simply a late tactical change rather than an attempt to gain a significant sporting advantage.
But it was still a clear breach of the competition regulations.
That leaves the WSL with a difficult question: how seriously should a rule breach be punished when the competitive advantage appears limited?
Why has no punishment been declared, and why can't the club be referred to an independent tribunal, with the outcome being a warning, a financial penalty, a points deduction, other sporting sanctions, or potentially a replay of the match?
The investigation must establish the circumstances before a decision can be made.
This is unfamiliar territory not just in women's football but in men's also: exceeding the substitution windows, not just subbing on more than five players. This case will set th precedent for how this breach should be treated and punished for other clubs in the future.
The purpose of limiting the windows is to prevent teams from repeatedly interrupting play and using substitutions to waste time.
That makes Palace's fourth window particularly relevant, given that it occurred in stoppage time at the end of the fixture when they were only up by one goal.
There is an obvious argument that the officials should have stopped the substitution.
If Palace had already used three windows, the fourth opportunity should not have been permitted.
But that does not necessarily mean Palace escape responsibility. A similar case where six subs were made concluded that the club cannot rely on officials to prevent every regulatory breach; it must share some of the onus.
The principle is important: both the teams and the officials have responsibilities to ensure the laws and competition regulations are followed.
The eventual investigation will therefore need to establish how the mistake happened rather than simply identifying one party to blame.
While currently the result remains untouched for Palace, a newly promoted side, this big early win and the possible overturn of those three points could change their whole season outcome.
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