KNOX City's four-game unbeaten run in the FFV state league 3 ended at the hands of Doveton at Waratah Reserve on Saturday.
With leading players Luke Cardamone, Milan Palenik and Judd Flores missing, Doveton put City to the sword, winning 4-1.
Doveton attacked with a vengeance from the starting whistle and had the visitors on the back foot for the first few minutes. Doveton received a free kick in that time with the resultant ball into the box allowing Anthony Saunders collect the ball at the back post and calmly put it into the back of the net to put his team up 1-0.
Doveton was soon back on the attack after the restart and it was only a matter of minutes before a Doveton player won the scramble for the ball in the 18 yard box and scored again putting his team well in control with the score 2-0 after only 12 minutes.
It took Knox five minutes from the restart to put some passes together to take them into the attack zone and Knox were presented with its first real opportunity when Ross Clark was bought down just outside the box.
Tom Szabo stepped up to take the free kick and hit it beautifully to bend it around the wall and put it into the top corner to get Knox back into the game at 2-1 at the 17-minute mark.
At 75 minutes, the referee awarded Doveton a corner when both teams had believed it a goalkick. From the cross into the box, the home side's Saunders rose above the pack to head home his second goal and put it up 3-1.
At the 81 st minute the continuous pressure told and a Doveton player danced across the face of goal and a stagnant Knox defence failed to close him down and he bagged his second for the day putting Doveton out of reach 4 - 1. The only dark spot for Doveton came when Marc Davidson was red carded at the 87th minute when he apparently abused an official.
The win confirmed Doveton as league winners with two rounds to go.
Knox faces two tough matches in the next week with a return clash against Doveton at Knox Regional Soccer Centre this Saturday at 3pm, followed by a catch-up game against Waverley Wanders on Wednesday night.