PORT ADELAIDE assistant coach Jarrad Schofield hasn’t shied away from his side’s disappointing loss to North Melbourne on Saturday night at Marvel Stadium.

Schofield wouldn’t be drawn into comparing the loss with others in the club’s history, but he did admit it was clearly the worst defeat of the season.

“In my short time here, it was definitely the most disappointing loss I’ve been a part of,” Schofield said at a press conference at Alberton Oval on Monday afternoon.

“To compare it to other games is obviously tough. As a coaching group and playing group, we are bitterly disappointed that we served up that type of game.”

The midfield coach said the coaching group made some in-game adjustments, but praise must be given to the Kangaroos for the way they played.

“Full credit to North Melbourne for what they did,” Schofield said.

“We tried to adapt but we were off our game, and we couldn’t pull it back. We were playing reactive footy and it felt like we were just chasing them all night.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t have moments where we could arrest the momentum. It was an onslaught.”

Schofield said senior coach Ken Hinkley sought answers from his players in an open and candid post-match review.

“Ken’s post-match was very honest,” he said.

“There was a lot of two-way conversation. He was very calculated and very honest. He asked a lot of questions.

“We want answers. It is important the players come up with some answers themselves. They identify and self-assess as a collective, and that’s what they did.”

To make finals this season, Port will now have to beat Fremantle at Adelaide Oval and rely on other results to go their way, but Schofield said the focus of the playing group and the coaching staff is on rebounding strongly against the Dockers on Sunday afternoon.

“We are fully connected to a common goal,” he said.

“This is obviously a disappointing loss. It’s about owning it and assessing why, and we will have those conversations again with the players in our review.

“We get back on the track. We’ve got this week - destiny is in our own hands. We are going to make sure we get our job done, and finish off on a real positive.”