Auckland FC are through to the Isuzu UTE A-League Grand Final after a 4-1 aggregate win against Adelaide United.
A 3-0 second leg win at Coopers Stadium was emphatic thanks to goals from Jake Girdwood-Reich, Sam Cosgrove and substitute Logan Rogerson.
Home ground advantage in the second leg counted little for Adelaide United as their horror run in semi-finals continued, a sixth defeat in a two-leg encounter. Auckland FC are into the Grand Final for the first time and are the first men’s team from New Zealand to make an Australian national league grand final.
Auckland had created the better chances in a scoreless first half, putting Adelaide United goalkeeper Josh Smits to work. Lachie Brook was foiled by the post in the 32nd minute, while Hiroki Sakai drew a sharp save from Smits in the 44th minute with an attempt from a tight angle on the right.
It was at the resulting Lachie Brook corner that Auckland FC took the lead, as Jake Girdwood-Reich leapt in front of Bart Vriends at the near post to connect with a powerful header.
Adelaide lost Brazilian forward Anselmo to injury in the 24th minute after a collision with Cameron Howieson. Luka Jovanovic, the joint golden boot, made his return from suspension off the bench as his replacement.
But Adelaide’s best chance before the half-time break was a tumbling Johnny Yull effort in stoppage time that went wide of the right post.
Adelaide’s search for an equaliser peaked in the 50th minute when a first-time cross from Jovanovic was met by Ryan White and foiled by a good one-on-one save by Michael Woud.
Auckland would double their lead soon after. Referee Daniel Elder pointed to the penalty spot after Sam Cosgrove was first to a cross from Hiroki Sakai and adjudged to have been fouled by Pana Kikianis.
Cosgrove went down the middle with his penalty, which was partially stopped by Smits but managed to creep over the line, with Cosgrove running in to smash the ball into the net for good measure.
The buffer was enough to take the sting out of Adelaide United, who in spite of long phases of possession failed to create a wealth of chances to bridge the gap.
The knock-out blow came in the 86th minute when Jesse Randall connected with a Nando Pijanker long ball and flew down the left flank on the break. Logan Rogerson made ground in the middle and slid in to score on the end of Randall’s cross.
Auckland FC will await the winner of Saturday’s semi-final between Newcastle Jets and Sydney FC, currently level 1-1 after the first leg. Should Sydney FC win, the Grand Final will be hosted by Auckland FC.
