DISAPPOINTMENT was the sentiment echoed by Melbourne’s players following the team’s 11-point loss to Brisbane on Friday night.

Despite a late surge from the Demons, in which the travelling side injected a five-goal streak into their final term, the Lions held on to finish with the four points.

Jake Lever, who was among the best for the red and blue, said the group was frustrated they weren't able to match Brisbane's intensity for the full four quarters. 

“We were probably disappointed with patches that we played tonight,” Lever told Channel 7 post-match.

“But Brisbane is a very good side, we respected them, and, in the end, they got the better of us.”

The home side dominated much of the statistics from the Friday match-up, leading both clearances (60-32) and stoppages (20-10), with Melbourne’s contest out strengthened by the Lions.

Christian Petracca, who felt the contest pressure first-hand, was candid post-match when reviewing the team’s efforts.

“We weren’t great for three and half quarters,” Petracca told Melbourne Media.

“We were just real fumbley…we let a few guys do what they want [in the contest], like [Lachie] Neale, so we’re pretty disappointed from that perspective.”

02:12

RD 2 | Christian Petracca Post-match

We speak to Christian Petracca after Melbourne's 11-point loss to Brisbane at the Gabba

It wasn't all-bad news for Melbourne though.

Following an unexpected power outage halfway through the final term, the Demons hit a late energy spark, turning a 40-point margin into an 11-point margin. 

This will to fight, that resulted in a change of momentum, will be the group's key positive takeaway from the clash up North. 

“The last 12 minutes we had nothing to lose, and we played like that, so we’ll take a lot of positives out of that last 12 minutes," Petracca said. 

“I thought we did a really good job of sharing the ball, going quick, which is what you want to see, fast footy.  

“I think we were probably a bit boring with the footy [in the first three quarters]. When we actually took the game on and used our runners, I thought we were very damaging.”

Lever also pinpointed this change in mentality during the extended power-outage break and explained that the group would look to this area of strength when they turn their attention to Round 3 against Sydney. 

“We spoke about being more aggressive," Lever said. 

“It was almost a situation where we had nothing to lose, the flip side would be that Brisbane think they’ve got everything to lose.

“So, I think with that combination, [the game] can really turn and we were able to score.

“It is what it is, and I think we’ll learn a lot from it, especially that last 12 minutes, but we’ve got to move on pretty quickly because we’ve got a pretty good side to face in Sydney next week.

"So, we’ll learn from it, but we’ll definitely move on pretty quick."