THE reason was glaringly obvious to coach Paul Roos.

Melbourne’s inability to get within two key statistics was telling.

In the end, the Giants had 25 more clearances and 45 more tackles. These were damning stats in anyone’s language. And they were the reason for Melbourne’s 32-point loss at Spotless Stadium, according to Roos.

“We got to within a point [in the final quarter], but ... there was a reason why they won and we didn’t,” he said post-match.  

“At the end of the day, the tackle numbers were 115 to 70 [and the clearances were 61 to 36].

“Clearances were minus 25 and [GWS ruckman] Mummy (Shane Mumford) had about 60 hit outs, so that was probably the difference in the game – those two stats at the end of the game.”

It was Melbourne’s third loss from as many matches and a frustrating one for Roos, given it was a winnable game, particularly after James Frawley kicked the opening goal of the final term to narrow the deficit back to one point.

So where to now for Roos’ Demons? 

“It's hard to tell really. As a group, we've just got to continue to get better and understand what is AFL footy? What is the demand?” he said.

“That’s really part of the process – we’ve got to work together as a group to make sure we lift those standards and we continue to move forward in that direction.

“Is it a step forward or step back? It's hard to tell. I don't like losing any week.”

For the players, it was also another bitterly disappointing day.  

But as defender Tom McDonald pointed out, the team needs to learn as much as it can from the result, bounce back and fight like hell for its opening win of the season against another winless side at the MCG next Saturday: Carlton.

“We’ve got to do our review – you don’t just move on from it – but it [was] an opportunity to win,” he said.

“We can’t win at the moment … at three quarter-time, we were in the game – so the next step for us is winning.

“If we can stay in the game and keep doing what we’ve been doing, we’ll give ourselves a chance to win and take the next step next week, so I’m looking forward to it.”