Melbourne City seals spot in semis

MELBOURNE City has made the A-League’s final four by defeating Brisbane 2-0 in their elimination final through second-half strikes to Stefan Mauk and Nick Fitzgerald.

Warren Joyce’s side delivered on their season of promise last night at AAMI Park, bossing the Roar from start to finish.

City might have won by a bigger margin but will gratefully take its prize — a semi-final away to Newcastle next Friday.

Brisbane barely fired a shot — metaphorically or literally — against City, ending the season with a whimper.

From the opening minutes, the Roar looked like they had spent all their meal tickets reaching the finals.

In contrast, City was well-drilled, full of run and enterprise. Bruno Fornaroli and Daniel Arzani impressed but this was a complete team performance.

City kept the tempo high in an attempt to stretch and out-work the more experienced Brisbane side.

When Luke Brattan went down clutching his thigh as halftime approached, Brisbane boss John Aloisi might have wondered whether his side had weathered the storm. Instead, City kept up the pressure. After knocking at the door for an hour, Fornaroli finally opened it. The Uruguayan pressured Jack Hingert into slipping in the corner, taking possession and setting up Mauk for the opener.

City’s commitment to attack allowed Dario Vidosic to break free and set up Fitzgerald to score in injury time.