PORT Adelaide coach Mark Williams admits Saturday night’s narrow loss to North Melbourne has dropped the club in the middle of a dogfight for a top-eight position at season’s end.

The Power went in to the match placed third on the AFL ladder, one game clear of eight teams locked on three wins, but Williams said the result just highlights how important a single win can be.

“It is a fine line in footy. We are very understanding that the pack is there. Fremantle has won tonight and they started poorly and came good,” he said after the five-point defeat to the Roos.

“Brisbane has won at the MCG. There are going to be lots of different results and surprises this year. The competition is so close.”

Williams blasted his team for its performance. The Power trailed for most of the night before kicking four goals in the dying minutes to almost pull off a miraculous victory.

“It was a terrible result for our club,” he said.

“I thought we started really poorly. We were probably expecting them to play exactly how they did and we didn’t handle it. We made way too many mistakes and fumbled the ball all the time.”

“We had a couple of bad injuries there that stopped a bit of flexibility as far as our run was concerned. In the end we were a chance but I’m not sure how many days [there will be] where the opposition kicks straight like that. It’s unbelievable.”

North Melbourne booted 20.5, including 14 goals at one stage without a behind, while the Power were not terribly inaccurate themselves, kicking 18.12 – but Williams didn’t put the loss down to conversion rate.

“Let’s be sure that they actually won all the hard stuff early and they dominated us at clearances early,” Williams said.

“You can do that and kick 65 per cent, not 99 per cent of your shots on goal. I’m not sure how many games you’ll have 14 goals in a row scored against you without any points. There’s one for the records today.”

Williams refused to blame his side’s sluggish start on the jubilation that followed last week’s Showdown win over Adelaide.

“Everyone will come up with a reason. We’re not using any excuses. We are desperately disappointed with how we played,” he said.

“Last week we won and I said we were just a battling side and this week we lost and I still say the same thing.”