‘I don’t like losing’: Crows smarting after first loss of the year

Adelaide coach Matthew Clarke says his side has a lot of work to do if it’s to be a genuine finals contender

Adelaide coach Matthew Clarke says the Crows will need to play better than Saturday’s loss to Brisbane if they are to challenge all the way to the finals.
Although the Lions’ three-point home loss was their first blemish of the season, Clarke was disappointed by the defeat and said his team had been overworked.
LIONS v CROWS Full match and statistics
Brisbane won clearances (29-23), contested possessions (117-102) and tackles (70- 48) – all figures, according to Clarke, indicate that his team has only once touched down on the pace.
“I don’t like losing,” he said after the game.
“We lost the game and were affected by their space and pressure… there was a big difference in the number of tackles throughout the day.
“When those things don’t go your way, you tend to get beaten.
“It was a pretty good game. We just don’t feel like we held up our end of the bargain for the four quarters.”

After dominating Brisbane for much of the first term, Adelaide led by just four points at the opening break.
The hosts turned things around in the second half, turning up the pressure and reaching 3.6-1.0 to hold on to a four-point lead before the Crows hit back strongly in the third quarter.
Clarke said his team’s inability to turn 34 shots in less than 50 seconds into more than nine scoring shots was also a problem.
That last connection is a little bit broken,” he said.
“Next week we have another good challenge in the North, but we’ll have to play a little better than that if we want to get to the final.

“We think our best football will be a combination of all the teams aiming for the top of the table. I think there are real opportunities throughout the eight games.