RICHMOND coach Ryan Ferguson has said his side needs to be mentally stronger, as the Tigers wobbled to a 0-2 start after falling to a young Western Bulldogs side by 21 points on Sunday.

The Tigers – who made an elimination final last year – were out-hunted around the ball, and most damningly, lost the tackle count by 20 despite being second to the footy for most of the match.

TIGERS v BULLDOGS Full match coverage and stats

"It was tough only because it just didn't feel like we ever got anything going – the plans we went in with for the game, we either didn't execute consistently or didn't have opportunities to execute because of our fundamentals," Ferguson said.

"Way too many free kicks (conceded), we dropped marks, we fumbled and then we didn't have the chance to use the space. It just felt like we never really got anything going.

"That contested ball, post-clearance – in the end, I feel like you can go to the stories or the whys, versus stay on task, stay the course. Ultimately, they were more consistent over four quarters, their mental game as well as their footy game. That's what we've get to work with, being mentally strong, and hold consistent for four quarters and every moment – I think that's a sign you're not on task.

"We looked like a team that was low on confidence, that's what it looked like. But the fact is, we've got what we need, we've got the weapons that we need, we've got the game that we need and we just need to take accountability for ourselves and for our team. We're in this together, and we can turn it around really quickly, but we just need to make sure we commit to that.

The forward line failed to take a mark inside 50 after losing the same count 4-12 in last week's loss to Sydney.

"The reality is we didn't have much supply. It was played between the arcs a fair bit, but I think we were over minus-10 inside 50s," he said.

"We only had maybe 21 inside 50s, so we didn't get much supply. When we did, it was either poorly executed, or the wrong decision or we weren't in the right spot."

Paige Scott will be monitored after a heavy collision between their leg/shin and that of Lauren Ahrens, with the Tiger spending some time off the field for treatment. They returned to play out the game.

Western Bulldogs coach Tam Hyett was thrilled with the tenacity of her young side, and the work of usual defender Elisabeth Georgostathis as a tagger on Monique Conti.

"We thought we were doing a lot right in the first half, and we felt we were able to finish off our work in the second half. Really good nourishment for the group, because they've put in a mountain of work in the off-season, and we know we've got a fair bit of work to go, but really good nourishment for them," Hyett said.

"I'm not going to lie, it was (a plan to have Georgostathis tag Conti). We call her the 'junkyard dog'. She's pretty ruthless at the contest, and we know how damaging Mon, as a premier midfielder, can be around stoppages. 

"That was in our planning during the week, and I thought she did a great job. Mon still had 20-odd touches, but they were all under pressure, didn't have too many clean ones, so 'Lizzo' did a great job."