He was the subject of an FFA match review panel today after TV cameras caught the incident which was missed by match officials at the time.

But the panel today found him not guilty and cleared him to play.

The FFA also heard an appeal by Victory defender Steve Pantelidis against his three match ban following a straight red two weeks ago.

They refused to overturn the ban, but halved his ban to just one week with the third week suspended.

The additional week will only be enforced if he gets another straight red in his next game, but Panta is still ruled out of the crucial Sydney showdown this weekend, leaving Melbourne's defence in tatters for the game.

His team mates Joe Keenan and Roddy Vargas are already banned for the match following their straight reds last weekend.

Seb Ryall is on national team duty and Danial Vasilevski is out with a shoulder injury while outcast Ljubo Milicevic is still reportedly out with a knacked knee.