Coach Bec Goddard says Adelaide’s hard-fought AFLW draw with Greater Western Sydney felt like a loss.

The two teams couldn’t be split after four quarters in the heavy rain at Blacktown International Sports Park, with the scoreboard deadlocked at 2.7 (19) apiece.

After trailing for most of the game, the Crows hit the front by a solitary behind midway through the last quarter.

But a scrambled behind at the other end leveled the scores with only a couple of minutes to play.

Goddard said her team was left to wonder what could’ve been after kicking 1.4 in the final term.

“It feels like a loss because we really had the opportunity (to win), I think, and the girls are really disappointed,” Goddard said after the game.

“ … the effort in the fourth quarter in particular, the girls didn’t give up, so you can’t criticise too heavily when you see that kind of effort.

“It’s just a shame we didn’t have it for four quarters.”

Both teams had the momentum at times in the trying conditions, but neither was able to fully capitalise.

The ball was locked in Adelaide’s forward half nearly 80 per cent of the opening quarter, but the visitors managed only 1.1 and the scoreboard was even at the first change.

“We didn’t really make them pay. That’s an opportunity to put teams away,” Goddard said.

“That’s part of learning about how to become a great footballer, isn’t it? And how you go about doing that, so we’ll certainly talk about that and review that during the week.”

Goddard also praised the Giants’ work at the contest, where vice-captain Alicia Eva excelled with a game-high 22 possessions and six tackles.

“I think GWS were first to the footy in the middle patch (of the game) and you get rewarded when you’re first to the footy,” she said.

“Their clearances were certainly clearing areas further than what we were with our clearances, so they were really good and they controlled that game well in the middle.”


Ebony Marinoff was in the thick of the action on Sunday

A contested-ball player well suited to wet weather footy, Crows midfielder Ebony Marinoff reclaimed her tackle record on Sunday evening.

Marinoff laid 21 tackles – nearly double that of the next-best player on the ground – to beat Carlton onballer Sarah Hosking’s individual effort of 16 earlier this season.

It’s the most tackles in a game by any women’s or men’s player at AFL level.

“It is a mighty effort for ‘Noffy’ and she’s certainly one of our biggest tacklers, but I know it (the record) won’t mean much to her because we’ve come away with a draw,” Goddard said.

“So, I think she will look back on her game and look at ways that she could have probably freed her teammates a little more as well as helping out with the tackling.”

The result leaves the Crows in seventh place on the AFLW ladder, percentage behind GWS.

The Western Bulldogs and Brisbane Lions are a game clear of the rest of the competition with three wins each.

Only the top-two sides at the end of the short home-and-away season quality for the Grand Final.

The Crows will regroup quickly ahead of Saturday night’s clash with Carlton at Norwood Oval, which is a must-win if the Club is to maintain even a glimmer of hope of defending its inaugural premiership.

“This is what this competition is like, you have to try and win as many games as possible to get the whole way through to the end,” Goddard said.

“(From here) You just have to try and win them all (the remaining three games) and hopefully get four quarters of the effort like we saw in the last quarter today.”