The Reds should have taken the lead in a drab affair through Craig Goodwin, who rocketed a powerful shot against the crossbar before the stroke of half-time.

But Marrone acknowledged a scoreless draw was a fair result - Adelaide were particularly willing to kill the contest through staunch defending.

"It's still a point and to be fair the match was pretty messy, a point is fair," Marrone said.

"We hit the bar and a few other half chances, we didn't create much with the ball though - it was all on the counter.

"Playing an unfamiliar role is always hard, but to keep a clean sheet is always nice."

Counterpart Jets centre-half Nikolai Topor-Stanley had more reason to be upset - two points dropped against fourth-placed Adelaide leaves them well-adrift of sixth place and finals football.

But even the rambunctious defender could argue little with both teams' tepid performances.

"Draw is fair in the end but we still had chances to win it, a few tired legs but we'll keep going," Topor-Stanley said.

"We never use the Asian Champions League as an excuse, but obviously it plays its role. We've always believed in finals football, and we still do."