Seldom in Port Adelaide's history has the club been happy about defeat, but that was exactly the attitude taken by coach Mark Williams as he sorted through their 11-point loss to Sydney.

The Power played with enough skill and spirit to down a high quality Swans side at AAMI Stadium, and were beaten only in the final minutes of an AFL contest that enthralled all day.

Immediately afterwards Williams had been at a loss to explain how his men had not taken the points, and on Monday he rationalised that into saying his team was on the road to success despite a worrying 3-6 ledger.

"The win/loss ratio might not seem that way but the style of game we played on the weekend and we delivered was exactly the right way we want to play and we were thrilled by the result." he said.

"I tell you, if you watched the game, it was one of the best games we've ever played.

"I thought it was a fantastic game and it was great for the supporters who got there.

"We got a lot of positives out of it - to play Sydney at their own game and to equal them in the tackles, hard ball gets and clearances and to beat them at the inside 50s, it was just a great game.

"A little bit of luck and we would've won it.

"If Shaun hadn't been suspended last week you'd probably say he'd be worth the difference in the game, but these things happen and so you move on - you can't plan for those things."

Williams said that if anything it was Port's mid-tier players, those who have played more than 40 games but fewer than 80, who have struggled to raise their games in 2008.

"It's not our absolute junior players, but the ones who have played between 40-80 games, who probably haven't taken a big step," he said.

"They probably played their best year ever last year and to think that they are going to double that again, it's a difficult task.

"They are going along, but probably not quite as quickly as we hoped.

"When you add those little factors together, you get losing four or five games by three goals or less.

"If you turn them around the other way, we win."

Port received good news on Monday with Brett Ebert cleared of any structural damage to his ankle after rolling it in the last quarter against the Swans.

He will however need to pass a fitness test to be available for Port's away game against Fremantle on Sunday.

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