GWS coach Adam Kingsley has lamented his side's "frustrating" loss to Fremantle on Saturday, conceding the Giants were zapped for energy across all facets of the game.
The Dockers had only slightly etched out a lead by quarter-time, but an inaccurate second quarter failed to demonstrate the dominance Fremantle had begun establishing on the contest, recording eight scoring shots to three.
Fremantle dominated clearance and contested possession throughout most of the contest, which made Kingsley quick to point out that the midfield battle was a key component behind the disappointing loss.
"It was frustrating, but I was more disappointed with our lack of work. We got outworked through the midfield there," Kingsley said.
"Their mids I thought were outstanding. Each of them. Their ruck was outstanding.
"I thought their contest to contest work rate was strong. They hit the scoreboard. They racked up possessions. They supported the contest.
"That's where the game was won."
Kingsley added that he felt the Giants were lacking energy in their defeat, but was unsure where it came from. The GWS coach considered that the Giants' heavy travel load may have been a factor, given they had played at seven different venues in the opening nine rounds, and only played at ENGIE Stadium twice in that run, citing that the club's reserves side also looked lethargic.
"Not much went right tonight, did it?" Kinglsey quipped.
"Didn't win centre bounce, didn't defend, didn't work, didn't move the ball.
"I thought after quarter time, our ball use was better. Certainly, the first quarter, maybe the first half, we went to contest far too much. We didn't really move.
"We just looked flat in all aspects of the game, we looked flat. So we hope that that's a one-week thing, and we move on pretty quickly, and it won't look like that next week.
"We'll look at our training program. It's been a pretty heavy stint away from home, but first game back, you kind of think, 'Hey, we're going to be up and about'.
"But even watching our VFL today, we were really flat in the VFL too. So you think, well, maybe it's caught up with us, that bit of travel.
"Maybe there's something in the program that we need to have a bit of a closer look at to freshen our guys up a bit, so we'll work the next two days to have a bit of a look at that and come up with a solution."
Attention now turns to a crucial clash against Carlton at Marvel Stadium in Round 11, with both sides coming off losses and sitting on the cusp of the eight.
"We'll move on quickly," Kingsley said.
"We'll focus on Carlton pretty quickly, down at Marvel, big game. We look forward to that."
