HAWTHORN coach Alastair Clarkson has bemoaned a lack of defensive effort from his charges in the wake of their 20-point loss to Adelaide at AAMI Stadium on Saturday night.

The Hawks dictated play in the opening half of the game and took a handy 19-point buffer into the major break before falling away sharply after half-time.

The last-half fadeout wasn't lost on Clarkson who was disappointed with the skill level of his troops in the final two terms as the Crows piled on 12 goals to five.

"We had some terrible clangers and some of our defensive efforts were quite poor," Clarkson said.

"The ball went out the back far too easily and they got some easy goals.

"We had the same amount of scoring shots but we couldn’t punish them - we had to work too hard for our goals."

However, the Hawks coach was adamant his side was a lot closer to victory than the final scoreline suggested and that his side was in the game until late in the final quarter.

"It was a pretty even contest. I think we hit the post three or four times in that third quarter - but that’s footy, a couple of lucky things go your way and maybe the result goes a different way," he said.

Buddy Franklin’s performance best demonstrated Clarkson’s theory, as the star full-forward found plenty of the footy (15 disposals) but could not stamp his authority on the match.

"Buddy kicked 2.6 and missed another, he could have been a very pivotal player tonight," Clarkson said.

"Phil Davis probably had the better of that duel, but it could have quite easily gone the other way."

The new substitution rule was also a source of frustration for Clarkson, who subbed gritty midfielder Brad Sewell at three-quarter time after the veteran had amassed 25 possessions and six tackles.

"We found it difficult to make the sub work tonight, because we had three or four players who were tired and fatigued at three-quarter time," Clarkson said.

"You’ve got a fresh player but when do you use him? It’s a conundrum for coaches.

"It takes your focus away from the game when you are considering these things - but they’re the rules."

Hawthorn returns to the MCG next week to face Melbourne and are likely to regain skipper Luke Hodge from an achilles injury.

"Hodgey will certainly come into calculations," Clarkson said.

"It would have been handy to have his steeliness tonight, but with the sub rule you have to make sure your boys are well conditioned."