Sydney FC's premiership three-peat dreams took a massive hit after star midfielder Luke Brattan was sent off just 35 minutes into the match and the Sky Blues never recovered, with Melbourne City icing a dominant performance with a stoppage time goal to win 3-1.
Locked in a tense opening-half at AAMI Park, Sydney got the jump on the home side after Kosta Barbarouses netted a pearler from outside the box against the run of play.
It didn't take long for City to reply, however, after Stefan Colakovski was given acres of space down the left flank, picking out Nathaniel Atkinson who blasted his effort high into the net.
With the tempo turned up, the stage was shaping for a grand final epic. But the match turned on a moment of madness in the 35th minute when Brattan was shown a second yellow card by referee Chris Beath, much to the disbelief of the experienced midfielder and his teammates.
But Brattan didn't have grounds for argument after coming in late on youngster Marco Tilio, a somewhat brash challenge considering he was booked just moments earlier, leaving his teammates a man down and on the back foot.
"A moment of madness," Socceroos great Robbie Slater said in commentary for Fox Football.
"There was no need to go for that second one particularly in the fashion he did. There was only one result that could come from that.
"It now spoils the game. It's made it nearly mission impossible (for Sydney FC)."
Brattan's absence was capitalised on minutes later when City were awarded a contentious penalty after a sustained period of pressure.
Skipper Scott Jamieson made no mistake, stepping up to the spot to slot home before the half-time break.
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