Waalitj Marawar are determined to return to the defensive foundations that drove the club's rise last season as they prepare to face Kuwarna in Saturday's round three clash.

Pearce said the Eagles have taken valuable learnings from the opening rounds and spent the week reinforcing their team defence ahead of Saturday's match.

"We've got to get back to defending as a team," Pearce said.

"We were pretty disappointed in our performance. It feels like a bit of everything, but stripping it back, defending as a team is the main thing.

"Working as a group of 16 to defend rather than trying to defend on our own will make a lot of aspects of our game look better."

Pearce said the Eagles may have become too focused on individual matchups rather than protecting dangerous space and supporting one another around the contest.

Despite the club's 0-2 start, Pearce said the focus remains on improvement rather than dwelling on results.

"We want to win every week, but at the end of the day we want to turn up this weekend and improve on our performance from last week," Pearce said.

"If we do that, the outcome will look after itself."

Senior player Emma Swanson said the group's mindset has remained positive throughout the week.

"As an older player you come in and get after what we've reviewed and try and train hard and set the tone that way," Swanson said.

"We've got such a good group. A lot of the young girls are the ones leading and we're along for the ride as well.

"The energy is really good and our focus is just on training hard."

Swanson said the players remain committed to a process-driven approach despite the pressures of the short AFLW season.

"We don't talk about the scoreboard, we don't talk about wins and losses, we really just talk about what we can do to get better," Swanson said.

The Eagles also receive a boost with Charlie Thomas returning to training after illness ruled her out of last weekend's clash against Gold Coast.

"It's great to have Charlie back out on the track today," Pearce said.

Kuwarna presents another significant challenge for Waalitj Marawar, with Pearce expecting the Crows' trademark toughness and midfield strength to test her side.

"They're always a tough opposition to play," Pearce said.

"They're playing the Adelaide way, which is tough and competitive, and they work hard."

Pearce noted the expectations surrounding the Eagles reflected the growth and progress the program has made in recent seasons.

"It says that the footy world has started to have expectations of us as a program and as a team,” Pearce said.

"I'm really confident in this team. We've got a lot of belief in the playing group and our staff that we've got the right people to get after it and dig ourselves out of it pretty quickly."