MELBOURNE coach Mick Stinear says solidifying fundamentals will be key to bouncing back from defeat at Norwood Oval on Saturday afternoon.
The Demons, who entered the contest with a clean account of 3-0, were outclassed by Adelaide on their home deck, registering the first loss of the season in warm conditions.
For Stinear, it all came down to the basics, with fundamental errors proving costly against the top-performing side.
“Majority of the game as on Adelaide’s terms and they were far too good for us today,” Stinear said in his post-match press conference.
“For three quarters, Adelaide was winning clearances, winning the contest and they were putting pressure on us in our defensive half.
“Fundamentally, I think we’ve got some work to do, and then we didn’t really challenge them on offence.
“It’s a good lesson for us today, and hopefully that’ll put us in good stead for the rest of the season.”
In what was their first interstate trip of the season, the Dees struggled to find their groove early on and were denied of moving the ball forward of centre for the most part of the day.
The stats sheet read 44 inside 50s to 21, in favour of the home side, with opportunity only coming in the final term for the visitors, Melbourne converting three late majors.
Skipper Daisy Pearce was behind two goals – she kicked the second after the final siren – while Tayla Harris managed the other.
Stinear, whose tweaks at the last break helped reduce the final deficit to 14 points, acknowledged that there was as much to learn out of the final quarter, as there was the rest of the game.
“The positive for us…is that we challenged them in the last quarter,” he said.
“We won a bit of our own ball and spent time in our forward half and made the most of it.
“It was about changing the dynamic, trying to help our ball movement across half-back and trying to get a little bit more speed and aggression on the inside. Then ultimately, we were able to give the forwards some opportunity.
“I like to think our group will bounce back and I definitely think it’s a nice lesson to learn early on in the season.
“We know we’ve got some work to do, but full credit Adelaide today.”
Melbourne will now look to regroup for a clash against Gold Coast, with the side set to host the Suns next Sunday at Casey Fields.
