City will play Newcastle Jets on Friday night with the winner progressing to the May 5 showdown.

Either way, it will be a groundbreaking result.

Newcastle haven't been to the grand final since winning it in 2008. City have never played off in a decider.

Stefan Mauk, after scoring the opening goal in City's 2-0 elimination final win over Brisbane Roar, says City's winning mentality can be an edge.

Coach Warren Joyce certainly knows what it takes to succeed, given his role in Manchester United's golden era under Sir Alex Ferguson.

And City's squad has plenty with silverware under their belts.

Mauk was a double-winner at Adelaide United two seasons ago, when bench-warmers Bruce Kamau and Eugene Galekovic also claimed medals.

Galekovic has another A-League winners medal from his time with Melbourne Victory.

Luke Brattan was part of Brisbane's glorious era - with Nick Fitzgerald joining him for the 2012 title before shifting to Central Coast for another championship the following season.

Fitzgerald counted Oliver Bozanic as a teammate in the Mariners' 2013 title-winning side - who also won the 2015 FFA Cup with Melbourne Victory.

Then there's Michael Jakobsen and Bruno Fornaroli, who both have two domestic titles in their homelands of Denmark and Uruguay respectively.

"We've spoken about that as a group. The coach said we've got a lot of winners," Mauk said.

"Not just myself. Brattsy who won a lot at Brisbane, Ollie who I think won it at Central Coast. We've got players that have won things."

Mauk said the experience of playing and prevailing in the big matches was crucial at this part of the season.

"Definitely for myself, going into this game I knew what to expect," he said.

"These are the games that matter. No one cares about round one or even round 27.

"It's just important that we take our chances when they come and we did that tonight."

Mauk said he believed both he and his club were peaking at the right time.

"It's the first time in the last four or five weeks where I've been completely injury free. And I'm feeling confident. That plays a massive part," he said.

"Everyone (at City) is firing at the right time.

"It was disappointing Jakobsen was out tonight but Ozzie Malik came in and played a great game.

"We've got a strong squad and that showed (against Brisbane)."

Australian Associated Press