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In a physical and high-intensity encounter, the Mariners were lucky not to have keeper Mark Birighitti sent off in the first half after he swung an elbow at Adelaide striker George Blackwood, sparking a scuffle in the box.
Without VAR in use in the competition, the referee missed the incident and Blackwood avoided any penalisation.
Adelaide had their own hint of luck early on, as defender Jordan Elsey made a goal-line block to deflect a strike onto the bar.
That kept the sides goalless at half time despite an open and end-to-end encounter.
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The Mariners then drew first blood against their more fancied opponents through a long-range Jack Clisby free-kick in the 63rd minute.
Clisby floated the ball toward the back post, and Mariners captain Matt Simon did enough to distract Adelaide goalkeeper Isaac Richards on his first senior start.
The nearly 6,000-strong crowd at Central Coast Stadium were ecstatic, but the mood quickly changed.
Matt Simon, who had unecessarily earned a yellow for pushing over a defender inside the opponents’ box in the first half, received a second-yellow card in controversial fashion in the 72nd minute.
Simon lifted an elbow and made contact with an opponent’s face while contesting a high ball, which was enough for referee Shaun Evans to deliver the second caution and give a furious Simon his marching orders.
It was the turning point of the match.
Just two minutes after Simon disappeared down the tunnel, Adelaide’s George Blackwood thumped home the equaliser after a glittering Nikola Mileusnic run carved apart the CCM defence.
The Mariners were clearly deflated at the loss of their captain and struggled to hold out the reigning champions, while coach Alen Stajcic bizarrely opted to not utilise his substitutes.
The chances continued to flow and Adelaide looked increasingly likely to earn a third-straight place in the decider.
In the 90th minute, Adelaide’s hometown hero Riley McGree was teed up by star striker Kristian Opseth and buried the winner.
After the match, Adelaide were drawn to host the Final against Melbourne City, who won the first Semi-Final on Tuesday night against NPL Queensland underdogs Brisbane Strikers.