It was a familiar story for Adelaide on Saturday night, with a brief lapse in the third quarter ultimately deciding the game.
The Crows allowed Melbourne to kick seven goals in the third term, including five unanswered majors from the 16-minute mark, with the visitors turning a half-time deficit into a 31-point lead at the final change.
Key defender Daniel Talia said the Crows needed to be more consistent across the four quarters.
“It’s getting pretty tight now for that finals race and losing really hurts,” Talia told AFC Media post-game.
“In that third quarter our contest and our hunt – I think it was 16-to-two
“It was too much work to get back from there.
“Our effort and our attitude
Melbourne had 20 more clearances on the night, highlighting their dominance around the stoppages which left the Crows chasing the game despite kicking the opening three goals to build an early 20-point lead.
“I don’t think we quite got the scoreboard reward [in the first],” Talia said.
“They kicked a goal in the last 30 seconds and we walked in nine points up but probably felt like we were in a four or five goal lead with the way we were playing.
“That hurt us early, but in the end they just sustained it - the hunt and the contest, for longer than we did.”
The Crows tried to repel the Demons’ momentum by pushing Mitch McGovern back as a seventh defender,
Despite now needing a minor miracle to play in September, Talia said the mood remains positive ahead of the Showdown against Port Adelaide with the loss providing a tough lesson for young players.
“It just shows, especially the young blokes coming into the side, you’ve gotta do it for four quarters against good teams otherwise you get exposed,” Talia said.
“It’s probably out of our hands and we’ve got to win all four to have a shot.
“If we bring that appetite and hunt to the contest for four quarters, we’ll certainly give it a shake.”
