South Melbourne to host A-League champions Sydney FC after crushing Gold Coast City in FFA Cup quarters

SOUTH Melbourne will get the A-League audition it has long craved after storming into the semi-finals of the FFA Cup with a 6-0 hammering of Gold Coast City.

Milos Lujic celebrates his brace.

SOUTH Melbourne will get the A-League audition it has long craved after storming into the semi-finals of the FFA Cup with a 6-0 hammering of Gold Coast City.

The former National Soccer League powerhouse will play Sydney FC at Lakeside Stadium in a mouth-watering tie against the defending A-League champion next month.

Western Sydney will host Adelaide in the other semi.

Milos Lujic celebrates his brace.

It could have all been so different given NSW NPL side Blacktown City was on the verge of the biggest upset in FFA Cup history, leading the Wanderers 2-1 deep into extra time only to concede a late equaliser and then lose on penalties.

Had Blacktown got through it could have thwarted South’s ambition to get a home clash with an A-League club that it says will showcase why it should be given a licence when the national competition finally expands.

Matthew Millar (C) also netted a double.

Milos Lujic and Matthew Millar both scored braces for South in a win that was sweet revenge given Gold Coast knocked it out of the 2015 FFA Cup in the Round of 32 at the same ground.

South’s success also continues a dominant record of Victorian NPL sides making it to the final four, with now three of the four non A-League semi-finalists in the Cup’s history hailing from this state.

Lujic’s class finish 102 seconds into the CBUS Super Stadium contest eased the nerves of the 300 or so travelling fans.

That the predatory striker, already one of the club’s all-time leading goalscorers, went on to score again soon after half time was fitting given his run of outs in this fixture two years ago.

South celebrates the win.

Lujic scored the opener that night, but was left to rue not making more of six other shots as South went on to lose on penalties.

Millar made his Melbourne City debut in its 2015 FFA Cup semi-final against Perth, but his eighth and 81st minute goals helped his current club venture to the same stage.

Jesse Daley and another former City player, Stefan Zinni, were the other scorers.