diff --git a/.gitea/workflows/cd.yml b/.gitea/workflows/cd.yml
index f825516..5f3a59a 100644
--- a/.gitea/workflows/cd.yml
+++ b/.gitea/workflows/cd.yml
@@ -48,7 +48,11 @@ jobs:
           mkdir -p ~/.ssh
           echo "${{ secrets.INFRA_DEPLOY_KEY }}" > ~/.ssh/infra_deploy_key
           chmod 600 ~/.ssh/infra_deploy_key
-          printf 'Host git.d-ma.be\n  HostName 127.0.0.1\n  Port 30022\n  StrictHostKeyChecking no\n' >> ~/.ssh/config
+          # In-cluster DNS to gitea's SSH NodePort service, not 127.0.0.1:30022
+          # (that only worked when act_runner ran on koala's bare host network;
+          # from inside the containerized runner's own pod netns, loopback
+          # never reaches the host — "Connection refused", found 2026-07-27).
+          printf 'Host git.d-ma.be\n  HostName gitea-ssh-nodeport.gitea.svc.cluster.local\n  Port 22\n  StrictHostKeyChecking no\n' >> ~/.ssh/config
 
           GIT_SSH_COMMAND="ssh -i ~/.ssh/infra_deploy_key -o IdentitiesOnly=yes" \
             git clone "${INFRA_REPO}" /tmp/infra-update