From 758 teams at the beginning of 2024, the final four sides face off this weekend to decide who contests the Australia Cup Final 2024.
Free-scoring Melbourne Victory host Adelaide United on Saturday, while South Melbourne pursue another Cupset against Macarthur FC.
- SEMI FINALS: Match Schedule Confirmed
- HOW TO WATCH: Live, free and exclusive on 10 Play
- GET TICKETS: Find Semi Final match tickets here
- FILIP KURTO: Winning a second Australia Cup, making saves and Harrison Sawyer
- ANDY BRENNAN: We’re going to have to adjust without Harry Sawyer
Melbourne Victory FC v Adelaide United FC
Date: Saturday 21 September 2024
Time: 7:30 pm (AEST)
Venue: AAMI Park
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The Semi Finals get underway in prime-time on Saturday night with the fourth edition of the Original Rivalry in the Australia Cup.
Melbourne Victory have won two of the three previous contests defeating the Reds 3-1 in 2015, and 2-1 in 2021, both on the way to lifting the trophy.
Adelaide United won the other bout 3-0 on their way to finishing runners-up in the Australia Cup Final 2017.
To reach the Semi Finals, Victory demonstrated their quality once more with a convincing and clinical 4-0 win over Moreton City Excelsior, who had previously eliminated a rejuvenated Perth Glory in the Round of 16.
New striker Nikos Vergos bagged a brace within 20 minutes, and Kasey Bos added a third a little over 10 minutes later. Nishan Velupillay finished off the tie with Victory’s fourth goal in the second half.
Vergos has scored three goals in his first two matches for Victory while Velupillay added another goal to his impressive tally of seven goal contributions in the competition so far, and currently sits as top goalscorer with five goals.
The 4-0 win over Moreton City Excelsior means Victory have scored four goals in all of their Australia Cup matches in 2024, and have had a player register two goals and an assist in each round.
Vergos continued that trend in the Quarter Final after Velupillay did so in the Round of 32 and Round of 16.
The Reds defeated Western Sydney Wanderers 2-1 to reach the Semi Finals after difficult 3-2 victories over Blacktown City and Olympic Kingsway.
Austin Ayoubi put the side in front within 10 minutes, but their opponents' second-half equaliser sent the match to extra time.
Just three minutes into extra time, Ryan Kitto put Adelaide back in front with a goal that proved to be the winner.
Kitto’s winner was his first goal since a stoppage-time consolation in a 4-1 loss against Central Coast Mariners in April 2023.
Ayoubi has developed a knack for scoring early goals, putting Adelaide into a lead 11 minutes in against Olympic Kingsway in the Round of 16 as well.
Also key to Adelaide’s progression in the competition has been winger Zach Clough, who has made the joint-most key passes (9) and the most accurate passes in the final third (58).
Clough has been supported by the three players with the most accurate passes overall in the competition, with Isaías (311), Panagiotis Kikianis (273) and Ethan Alagich (218) making up the top three. Alagich has also won the most duels (33) of any player.
Goalkeeper James Delianov has also been busy as no goalkeeper has made more saves than his 21 as well as the most saves inside the box (13) of any goalkeeper in the Australia Cup, in what looks to be an enticing battle against the free scoring forwards of Melbourne Victory.
Adelaide United have never lost an Australia Cup Semi Final reaching the Final on all four occasions, and going on to win three of those in 2014, 2018 and 2019.
South Melbourne FC v Macarthur FC
Date: Sunday 22 September 2024
Time: 6:00 pm (AEST)
Venue: Lakeside Stadium
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Semi Final Sunday sees Macarthur FC travel to face NPL Men’s Victoria Premiers South Melbourne at Lakeside Stadium.
South Melbourne extended their season with a come-from-behind 3-2 win over Hume City in extra-time of their Quarter Final.
They went into the break behind, but less than five minutes into the second half, Macarthur-bound Harry Sawyer converted a penalty.
The side battled for a lead, which came through Maximilian Mikkola in the 73rd minute, however, Hume equalised two minutes later and the game needed an extra 30 minutes.
Jordan Lampard found the winner in the 115th minute to send South Melbourne through to their second-ever Australia Cup Semi Final.
The defender was a key contributor to the South Melbourne attack, having additionally picked up the assist for Mikkola’s second-half goal.
Lampard has been impressive from left-back, joining United's Zach Clough with the joint-most key passes in the Australia Cup this year with nine.
South Melbourne last made the Semi Finals in 2017, losing 5-1 to Sydney FC and a win on Sunday will see the side become the second ever Member Federation club to reach the Final in the modern era (since 2014).
They will be without star forward Sawyer after he sensationally completed a deadline-day move to Macarthur and will be cup-tied for the remainder of the tournament.
Sawyer scored two goals in three games, including the winner in South Melbourne’s Round of 32 Cupset against Wellington Phoenix and the team will need to make adjustments quickly with the towering forward having become a focal point of Head Coach Esteban Quintas' gameplan.
South Melbourne have won all of their matches by a single-goal margin, and their last two matches (Round of 32 and Round of 16) have gone to extra time, demonstrating their comfort in going beyond the regular 90 minutes.
In contrast, all of Macarthur's Cup ties have been completed within 90 minutes.
Macarthur were made to work for their Semi Final spot with a tense 1-0 win over South Melbourne’s rivals Oakleigh Cannons.
Valere Germain’s goal within the first three minutes and an man of the match performance by Filip Kurto in goal proved enough as they withstood the Cannons’ superior shooting numbers.
Germain now has three goals and one assist in his three matches this year.
Winger Marin Jakolis also has three goals to his name and two assists in what has been a stunning start to his Macarthur career.
Jakolis (56) and another new signing Luke Brattan (54) have made the second and third most accurate passes in the final third while Brattan has also made the most opposition half accurate passes (115) of any player in the competition.
Goalkeeper Filip Kurto proved unbeatable against Oakleigh, making nine saves including two save of the year contenders to maintain the Bulls' cleansheet, and the Pole has made the joint-most saves from outside the box (7) of any goalkeeper.
Both the Bulls’ and South Melbourne’s matches have been tight finishes, with both teams only prevailing by a single-goal margin on each occasion.
Sunday promises to be an enticing match up as South look for another Cupset at home and a maiden Australia Cup Final, while Macarthur FC conntinue their search for a second Australia Cup in three years.
