They controlled their round 12 Blowes Clothing Cup clash against Orange Emus during that period, throwing the ball around with gay abandon to produce some scintillating passages of play and outscore the defending premiers 17-nil.

The problem for Roos was the other 60 minutes of the game.

During that hour in between their best the visitors' error-riddled and ill-disciplined performance gifted Emus a mountain of possession and with it field position, which the greens gleefully took advantage of to cross for 38 points of their own.

"Those periods were good and I see real, real potential in this side, we just can't seem to do it for 80 minutes," Roos' stand-in skipper Mark Baldwin said, he cut a figure of gravitas following the 21-point defeat.

"There was just too many errors and we gave away too many penalties and you just can't do that against a good side like Emus, they'll make you pay, they made us pay."

Baldwin led the side in place of the unavailable Shaun McHugh and he admitted not having his fellow Central West and NSW Country Cockatoos teammate played a big role in his side's performance.

"We did miss Macca. Our lineout didn't function all that well today and that was a big part of it," Baldwin said, with Emus' lineout general Nick Hughes-Clapp pinching four of Roos' throws before being given a break at the 65-minute mark.

"Just in general really we probably lacked a bit of direction and leadership without him, we were a bit all over the place at times so it'll be good to get him back in."

Baldwin went on to admit his side will need to reassess now with three weeks left in the regular season.

Roos remain in fourth, but only narrowly. With Forbes knocking off Cowra the fifth-placed Platypi have slashed the gap to just three points.

"We'll have to go away and have a look at things, like I said I see plenty of potential, we just need some consistency," Baldwin said.

Roos started in perfect fashion, picking up a second minute penalty and crossing through Will Michell immediately. They looked good from the restart too, exiting well and plonking Emus back in their own end.

But the joy didn't last long as the Emus crashed over again and again for six tries.

Roos did wrestle some momentum back in the dying minutes and Tim Beach and Josh Howarth both scored well-earned tries as a result, but the game was too far gone for the Roos to claw back by then.