Kennedy's late strike secured a 3-1 second-leg win for Nagoya Grampus over J.League rivals Kawasaki Frontale that sends them through to the semi-finals of the Asian Champions League with a 4-3 aggregate victory.

Kawasaki went into the game looking to defend their 2-1 win from the first leg but found themselves 2-0 down when Yoshizumi Ogawa and Maya Yoshida scored for Nagoya before Jong Tae-se reduced the deficit for the visitors before half-time.

The game looked to be heading for extra time but Australian Kennedy popped up to fire home with two minutes remaining and send Nagoya through.

The victory also marked the first time Nagoya have beaten Kawasaki in their last 10 meetings.

Kennedy caused problems for the visitors from the outset as Nagoya enjoyed the majority of the possession in the opening exchanges.

And they deservedly took the lead after 27 minutes when Nagoya midfielder Ogawa drove an effort into the top-right corner of the net after breaking through the defence from midfield.

That goal spurred Nagoya on and they added a second in the 35th minute when Yoshida headed home Alessandro Santos' precise free-kick.

Kawasaki battled back, however, just three minutes later when Jong Tae-se latched on to a pass from Renatinho and the North Korea international made no mistake from inside the area.

The balance of play swung in favour of Kawasaki after that but Nagoya came closest to scoring again when Kennedy's close-range effort was well saved by the Kawasaki goalkeeper.

Nagoya started to take control once again as the game entered the closing stages and Kennedy sent the home fans into raptures when he pounced to fire home a rebound from Magnum's decent shot.