KINGSCLIFF THROUGH TO FINAL

Gold Coast Knights 0

Kingscliff 2 (L. Morley 2)

HT 0:0

RACQ Division One side Kingscliff stunned high-flying Premier League outfit Gold Coast Knights with a 2-0 victory in the semi-final of the Dog & Parrot FA Cup.

The win kept Kingscliff’s 100% record intact for the season and booked their passage into the final of the competition as they claimed yet another Premier League scalp.

Former Brisbane Strikers marksman Luke Morley was again the main man in front of goal and his double strike was enough to see off the Knights who were missing the influential David Pilic and striker Luke Sleight from their starting line-up.

It was goalless at the break but the Knights enjoyed their best spell of possession at the start of the second period without truly testing the Kingscliff custodian. However, the irrepressible Morley opened the scoring just after the midway point of the half when he slid the ball past Danny McKinnon in the Knights’ goal.

It was no more than Kingscliff deserved following a fearless display against John Stewart’s Knights. The Division One leaders took the game to their more illustrious opponents and capitalised on their superior pace and more direct approach.

As the home side pushed forward in search of the equaliser Morley put the result beyond doubt with his second goal in the dying minutes when he broke free of his lone marker and finished a fine pass from Leyton Pauli.

Craig Madden’s men showed they will be a force to be reckoned with once promotion to the top flight is confirmed for next season and the Kingscliff coach said their performance typified their sky-high confidence.

“I thought we controlled the whole game and I don’t think they had any really clear-cut chances,” Madden said.

“They seemed to play a lot of long ball stuff and we capitalised on that because our defence is very strong. I told the players that if we kept it tight at the back and maintained our shape we could win the game,” he added.

With a berth in the final now booked, Madden says his team has a great chance to pick up their first silverware of the season against the winner of the Broadbeach Utd/Palm Beach tie.

“It’s all about what happens on the day; it’s a two-horse race so we’ve got a good chance,” he said.

The loss was a blow for the Knights who appear to have hit something of a flat spot following their surprise 1-1 draw with Coomera last week in the Buffalo Sports Premier League.

“They played a different style to what we’re used to; their quick breaks caught us out,” said Knights boss John Stewart.

We’re not playing badly as such and last night’s performance was more to do with our [poor] decisions than our effort. We gave a lot of ball away which is not like us because we practice hard on our ball retention.”