The Thunderbolts secured a hard-fought 87-77 victory at the Port Macquarie Regional Stadium on Saturday, March 23, in what proved to be a challenging game for the Dolphins.

Coach Nick Prior admitted the Dolphins weren't at their best on the weekend.

"It was a bit of a slow start from us, and we just continued to be on the back foot in the game," he said.

Prior said there were lessons learnt during the game.

"I think that defensively we were quite good, but the main thing we spoke about after the game is that we need to minimise our fouls," he said.

"I think we competed relatively well, but I think we also could've contested the ball a bit more. It's something we can work on moving forward.

While Prior admitted that the Dolphins have yet to find their offensive flow this season, he said he was hopeful that with more games under their belt, the team will be able to improve in that area.

"I think the positive thing that we took out of the game was that the little things we know we need to improve on are not difficult things... they are within our control."

Looking forward to their upcoming matches against St George White and St George Red in Sydney, Prior emphasised the need to remain focused and not underestimate any opponent.

"The danger of it being so early on in the season is that any team can cause an upset," he said.

"We would like to win both games, but ultimately we're going to continue to grind away and stick to the process that we've been working on.

"Hopefully, we can continue to make those incremental steps and improve throughout the season."