Sydney coach John Longmire reflects on the Swan's 10-point loss to Adelaide on Friday night ...
On where it was lost ...
The problems started long before the third quarter. The first half we were 6-16 in clearances, 4-20 in first possessions. The first quarter was the problem and unfortunately that puts you on the back foot and you become reactive to how you set up because you need some support. If you aren’t winning the ball around the contest, you need some support and then you get outnumbered in the front half, it becomes a vicious cycle. Need to be winning the ball where it matters. It’s very difficult to get proactive when you aren’t winning the footy. You can look at the structure and personnel changes, but if you come in with those sorts of numbers at half-time from your midfield group (it doesn't matter). The numbers just weren't up to scratch.
On Sydney’s quiet midfield ...
Our mids didn’t touch it much at all in the first half. All of our possession getters were defenders, with those stats it’s probably not surprising. We just got well beaten in the middle of the ground. We didn’t win our contests, and they were better at it than us.
On trying to even it up in the last term ...
They missed some in the first quarter and otherwise it might have been a bit worse at quarter time. The third quarter there was a period of about 15-minutes where we got some hit, and we try and even it up. In the last quarter we tried to even it up again then they kicked two goals and put it out to 21 points again and then we had to go back to the other end but obviously we are going to be outnumbered again. It was the story of the night.
