Freo gave up a 26-point quarter-time lead against North Melbourne at Docklands on Saturday, which Ibbotson admitted was disappointing.
"It was good to start off like that and it gave us a lot of confidence. The problem we have to face is being able to not just hang onto a lead when we get one, but running away with games and capitalising on good starts," Ibbotson said after the 13-point loss.
"We were working for each other really well early, doing well around the clearances and we had a bit of room in our forward line, which made everyone's decisions a lot easier. But we started to lose around the clearances in the second quarter and that obviously had a big effect on the game.
"The Kangaroos are known for their spirit and we always knew they would come out pretty hard, but we just couldn't stop it. We tried to make it a bit more of an arm wrestle and get back in control, but just couldn't get there.
"We need to learn how to finish off teams when we start well. We'll be working hard on that."
The defeat continues a poor run at Docklands for the side, which has won just once in the last 10 visits.
"I don't know, I really can't explain it, but we obviously don't have the record here that we would like," Ibbotson said.
"We're not real happy with what happened, but there were some positives and we'll take them out of it and go again."
