Adelaide Senior Coach Matthew Nicks has urged his side to look at the positives following its loss to the top team on Saturday.

The Crows went down to the Western Bulldogs by 49 points in Ballarat.

Despite the defeat, Nicks said there were encouraging signs from the game - particularly a strong first quarter when only 12 points separated the two teams.

Speaking to AFC Media after the match, defender Nick Murray said the coach had some encouraging words to share.

“Obviously (it was) a disappointing result,” Murray said.

“(But Nicks) said it’s really exciting the direction we’re going and we showed that our best is good enough.

“We've shown that in patches and when we absorb (the pressure) we are a much better footy team.”

The young defender returned to the field in Round 20 after sitting out the win against the Hawks a week prior due to the AFL’s Concussion Protocol.

Murray said he was happy to be back playing and was looking forward to the final three games of the 2021 campaign.

“It’s a long season… I came back a little bit fresher,” Murray said.