Speaking post-match after Sunday's loss at Skilled Stadium, Hardwick was frustrated by his side's efforts and said his team has "still got a long way to go".
"I'm disappointed to lose every week - make no qualms about that. It's probably the first time I'm disappointed in all four quarters, from our point of view," he said.
"I didn't think we offered a fight to Geelong at any stage. In saying that, they are a bloody good side - they're a side that's going to challenge again and quite possibly run away with it again.
"So we've still got a fair way to go, but the thing we probably can take out of it is that's the level we've got to get to and it's going to take a number of years. But it's just a step forward for us every time we take that field against a quality side."
Hardwick said Geelong was far superior in development, particularly in the midfield, which made it difficult for Richmond to compete.
"Their bigger bodied players like Cameron Ling and even Joel Selwood … they're just solid individuals and our boys got buffeted out of the way. We had to put [Shane] Tuck back in there, [Dean] Polo and [Alex] Rance … so we could actually compete on a clearance level," he said.
"You're shuffling chairs on the Titanic to catch up, but we couldn't manufacture anything."
Next round, Richmond travels to AAMI Stadium, where it will meet Adelaide - the only other winless team in the competition. And Hardwick is optimistic about his team's chances.
"We go in every game thinking we can win. Some people might call that unrealistic, but you don't play footy not to win. We'll approach the game exactly the same as we did this week and hopefully with a better result," he said.
