Inaugural Canberra United captain Ellie Brush has left the door slightly ajar for a W-League return in a bid to play at the Tokyo Olympic Games.
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Brush considered retiring from W-League at the end of last season, but the postponement of the 2020 Olympics has given her a second chance to push for selection.
The prospect of her career coming full circle in Canberra is also weighing on her mind, with the 31-year-old defender considering playing a W-League swansong with United.
Brush has two international caps and hasn't played for Australia since 2009, but is adamant her best days could still be ahead.
"The postponement of the Olympics has given me a little bit of sight that maybe it's a second chance to go around again in the W-League and push for selection," Brush said.
"That's maybe something around the corner that I can really work hard at.
"I think it's an opportunity where I can add some experience to the backline of a team, I still think my best days can be ahead of me."
Brush has made more than 100 W-League appearances across stints with Canberra, Western Sydney Wanderers and Sydney FC.
She was part of the competition's inauguration and won two championships with Canberra, before leaving the club to become a dual-code AFLW star in Sydney.
The Canberra product lives in the Harbour City and is preparing for the upcoming NSW National Premier League season with Northern Tigers.
In the meantime Sydney has been keen for Brush to recommit for the 2020-21 W-League season, but she hasn't ruled out a Canberra homecoming.
Her main concern is the coaching vacancy at United left by Matildas great Heather Garriock. Capital Football has begun interviews with a shortlist of candidates and are hoping to have a coached signed within the next month.
"Sydney has been really good to me, as has Canberra. It will really be where I need to be with my life, as well as what makes sense from a football perspective," Brush said.
"Sydney has been quite keen and at this stage we don't really know who the Canberra coach will be. That's a concern for Canberra and I'd love to think it's a place where I can come back to and finish my career.
"It would be a really nice way to go about it. I'm working and living in Sydney and those things we need to take into account as well."
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Football Federation Australia's new agreement with broadcaster Fox Sports will see the next W-League season played in a window between December and July.
It's the first step in what will be a gradual shift towards a winter schedule, with the W-League likely to be extended to a full home-and-away season in the coming years.
Brush welcomes the impending shift to winter but expects the upcoming season will still be scheduled for the summer months.
"For this first season we may still see the W-League in the window of summer, perhaps from November to March or April, which I think will be smart," Brush said.
"But going forward, that change can be welcomed. We've been asking for the season to be extended for a very long time, it's still not a full home-and-away season.
"Wherever we can get some airtime and fit in with the right broadcast situation to have that, is the right way to go. If it's winter then that's okay.
"It might mean we have a strong second tier competition feeding into the W-League or playing alongside it."