On Saturday afternoon, the Power lost its fourth game of the season by 15-points or less, when they went down to the Swans by 11 points at AAMI Stadium.
Port Adelaide trailed by 14 points at the final change, but surged in the last quarter and hit the front, before being overrun by the persistent Swans.
The Power exceeded expectations by making the Grand Final last year and Williams used the opportunity to remind fans the young team’s improvement would be an ongoing process.
“It’s a tough, hard game football. It rips the guts out of you, certainly emotionally,” Williams said after the game.
“The players put a lot of effort into the game. We didn’t get over the line, but we kept at it".
“We didn’t the result, so we’re all disappointed. The losses keep adding up and it makes it tougher and tougher each week.
“Let’s be realistic about it, it’s going to be very, very tough [to make the eight], but we’ll continue to try and win, there’s no doubt about it.
“At each opportunity we’ll make sure that our players are getting good chances to develop and improve. If it’s [finals] this year, it’s good, if it’s next year it’s good and if it’s in three years time … we’ll make sure we get ourselves into a position where we can run to finals.
But Williams believes his team is still competitive with the best in the competition.
“We haven’t won enough games to be in the eight at the moment, but we’re not far out. If we’d taken our chances today, we probably would’ve almost been in the eight. Is the season over? Gee, I think we’re really competitive. I think most sides that win against us would walk away thinking it was hard earned," he said.
“I think if you look at the teams we’ve played, we were competitive against Hawthorn, Geelong, Adelaide and Sydney, we’ve been competitive against most teams, but we’re just not finishing or getting the result.
“That continues to add up and it doesn’t please anyone. It doesn’t satisfy us or our supporters.”
Williams moved down to the boundary line during the third quarter in a bid to further motivate his players to win the game, but he was left to lament the Power’s inefficiency in front of goal.
Port Adelaide had eight more inside 50m, but finished two goals behind on the scoreboard.
“I think we kicked five or six balls out on the full. We’re the number one team at kicking goals on the run and we probably missed four or five today. You just have to nail your chances, especially against a quality side like Sydney,” Williams said.
“I thought motivationally, if we could give the players a bit extra, it might get us over the line. We got to the point where we were in front, which was a huge effort for the guys, but to Sydney’s credit, they kept going.”
Williams praised the performances of six-goal star Brett Ebert, Warren Tredrea, Danyle Pearce, Dean Brogan and also youngster Alipate Carlile and conceded that close wins last year might have added gloss to the Power’s season.
“I think last year, we won five games by less than a goal or something. That can muck around a little bit with your form in terms of where, exactly, you’re at. This year, I think we’ve lost five games by less than three goals,” he said.
“It’s probably like when you go fishing off a jetty. One day, you can just drop the hook in and everything jumps on. The next day you think, ‘why is this not working?’
“If you think there’s a magic formula … to winning those close games -- well there’s not.”
