West Coast Eagles co‑captain Liam Baker says the group has taken valuable lessons from last week’s result and is determined to respond with a strong team performance against the Cats at Norwood Oval on Sunday.

After an honest review following the round four 128-point loss to Sydney, Baker said the focus this week has been on learning quickly, staying connected as a group and returning to the standards the Eagles showed earlier in the season.

“We looked at positives and negatives like we do every other week,” Baker said.

“There were obviously more negatives last week, but there’s also plenty to learn from it and we went straight into that after our review day.

“Just keeping the boys up and about after a loss like that is important for the leaders.”

Baker said the feedback had been frank, with the playing group clear on the areas that need improving as they prepare for another quality opponent.

“It was just honest feedback. We weren't good enough against Sydney and they torched us because of it,” Baker said.

“We've shown it in the pre-season and the first few games that the way we've been playing stacks up against better teams, so we'll just go back to that.”

The co-captain also pointed to the long-term nature of the season, particularly for a young group continuing to build resilience and consistency.

“One game won’t reflect how our whole season turns out,” Baker said.

“We’re going to have bad days; everyone does but it’s about making those bad days not as bad as last week.

“So that's what we're working on, whether it's mentally or the way we're actually playing the game.”

Baker said work rate was a clear area of focus following the match, acknowledging the standard required to compete with the competition’s leading sides.

“When you're 5 per cent off against a team like that you get torched on the outside,” Baker said.

“It's a great lesson to see how ruthless a top four team is, so we'll take plenty of learnings from them.”

The challenge won’t ease on Sunday, with the Eagles set to face a Geelong side renowned for its consistency across all venues, as Gather Round again brings a festival atmosphere to South Australia.

“The Cats are always good, whether it’s home, away or Gather Round,” Baker said.

“It’s a great challenge for us to bounce back against another quality team.”

As Gather Round gets underway in Adelaide, Baker said the excitement was evident around the group as soon as they arrived.

“The buzz is massive,” Baker said.

“It’s good for footy, it’s good for Adelaide and it's great to be here again for it.”