Melbourne City's reign as FFA Cup holders ended in lacklustre fashion as Sydney FC eased to a 2-0 quarterfinal victory at Leichhardt Oval on Wednesday.
Goals early in each half from Jordy Buijs and Alex Brosque sealed a deserved victory for a Sky Blues side chasing a maiden cup win to add to last year's A-League crown.
There were few signs of a repeat of last season's well-matched and occasionally tempestuous final between the two sides.
Sydney FC largely dominated the contest, although genuine goal scoring opportunities largely remained at a premium in front of a preseason crowd of 4,102.
Buijs set Sydney on their way with a perfectly flighted free kick from 20 metres after seven minutes, with goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne remaining a spectator throughout amid an uninspired performance from big-spending City.
The stage was perfectly set for Tim Cahill to conjure some trademark X-factor for his side, and while City started the second half with vigour following his half-time entrance, it was Brosque who grabbed the headlines with a superb goal.
The Sky Blues skipper took advantage of a cheap defensive turnover before rounding one defender and expertly lobbing a stranded Eugene Galekovic.
Redmayne was finally called into action in the dying minutes, denying Bruce Kamau from close range.
Meanwhile, any hopes of some giant-killing in Melbourne were quickly quashed as a Nikola Mileusnic hat trick inspired Adelaide United to a 3-0 win over Heidelberg United.
It was feisty encounter at Olympic Village at times as former National Soccer League club Heidelberg attempted to reprise a famous win over an A-League opponent following their victory over Perth Glory a month ago.
However, Mileusnic scored from close range on three minutes thanks to Ryan Kitto's assist, and doubled the advantage eight minutes later with a smart turn and volley from near the penalty spot.
The hat trick arrived on the hour mark with another close-range finish to effectively end the match as a contest.