Richmond winger Maddie Shevlin has delivered an honest review of Sunday's loss to the Western Bulldogs at IKON Park, calling for a strong response against Essendon.

The Tigers fell short by 21 points, suffering their second loss of the season, after being within eight points in the final term.

It's now full focus on the trip to Darwin for Dreamtime on Friday night, with Shevlin aware the group is forced to move on quickly.

"We've got a five-day turnaround before we head to Darwin. We have to get better," she told Richmond Media post match.

"Too many uncontested marks, they picked their way through us. A couple of big sessions on the track and hopefully a big response."

It was an emotional day as the Club celebrated star midfielder Monique Conti's 75th AFLW match, with Shevlin disappointed the side couldn't rise to the occasion.

"I think that's where it's more shattering (losing). She epitomises the Richmond player," she said.

"To be so close in patches, then so far away in other patches. She deserved a better performance from us."

The thought of playing for Conti, as well as each other, is something the side will use as motivation for the Essendon clash on Friday night.

"She means a lot to us, so that will spur us on for this week," Shevlin said.

And while it hasn't been the start Richmond wanted, the two early losses are not a deterrent to hit the ground running against Essendon.

"We probably didn't play the way we wanted to play. We went away from being predictable and playing to our game strength," Shevlin said.

"We need to go back to basics and be really assertive in the contest. We were bullied there by the Bulldogs, so it's a big week on the track."

Dreamtime in Darwin between Richmond and Essendon is set to take place at TIO Stadium on Friday night.