Live: Adelaide United v Auckland FC, A-League semifinal second leg

Auckland FC are into the A-League men's grand final at the second time of trying.

After the disappointment of last season - when they won the Premiers' Plate, but were dumped out of the semifinals - a 3-0 win over Adelaide United in the second semifinal in Adelaide, at a soldout Coopers Stadium on Friday night, has propelled the competition's newest club into the showpiece event.

The scores were level at 1-1 after the first leg of the semifinal in Auckland, but the visitors struck just before halftime on a wet night in South Australia to break the deadlock.

A corner-kick from Lachie Brook was headed home by Jake Girdwood-Reich in the 44th minute to give the visitors a 2-1 lead on aggregate goals.

After the break, leading goalscorer Sam Cosgrove was a awarded a penalty, which he got just across the goal-line to extend the lead.

Substitute Logan Rogerson scored Auckland's third of the night, just his second goal of the season, as he slotted home off an assist from Jesse Randall in the 86th minute.

For Randall, the result means he gets one more game in Auckland colours, before he leaves for Dundee United in the Scottish Premiership next season.

As tempers rose and fatigue set in, the Black Knights were able to hold on for a second win over Adelaide in a history of close battles between the sides.

With the 4-1 win on aggregate, they have now done what they could not last season, when they lost the two-legged semifinal to Melbourne Victory, and will face either Premiers' Plate winners Newcastle Jets or Sydney FC in next week's grand final.

Read how the semifinal unfolded below: