ADELAIDE'S confidence hasn't taken a pre-Showdown hit despite the Crows' 57-point trouncing from the Western Bulldogs, wingman David Mackay says.

The Crows had been the talk of the competition after their undefeated start under new coach Phil Walsh, but were given a harsh reality check by the more ferocious Dogs at Etihad Stadium on Sunday.

Luke Beveridge's side broke down the vaunted defensive wall Walsh had built across the field, splitting open the Crows with a six-goal-to-one first term and never looking back in a dominant 18.17 (125) to 10.8 (68) performance.

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It was a far cry from Adelaide's convincing wins over North Melbourne, Collingwood and Melbourne – when Walsh's men conceded a League-best 181 points and were averaging the most tackles with nearly 78 per game.

Not only did the Dogs boot 18 goals and expose the Crows' backline, they controlled the ball (401 possessions to 364) and laid more tackles (69-51) than their highly-rated opponents.

But speaking to AFL.com.au after the loss, Mackay said the Crows' confidence hadn't been rocked, and he declared the defeat would be a valuable lesson before Sunday's much-anticipated Showdown against a resurgent Port Adelaide.

"We were so far from the way we want to play and training over summer and executing over the first three weeks, so I think we'll review it and get better from it," Mackay said.

"They were a couple of levels above us in intensity from the first bounce and you just can't survive in this competition when you're like that.

"They were really good around the footy. They tackled well and their pressure was good. We prepared for that but we didn’t execute tonight, that's the really disappointing part about it.

"It simply wasn't good enough from us."

Speaking at his post-match coach's press conference, Walsh was surprisingly upbeat about the defeat and keen to see how his side would respond against the hard-running Power.

After starting the season 0-2, Port has started to hit some form with close wins over top-eight contenders North Melbourne and Hawthorn.

Mackay, who gathered 14 touches against the Dogs, said the 38th Showdown was the perfect chance for the Crows to make a statement against their bitter rivals.

"Every week's tough and next week is no exception," he said.

"We've got to use this result to make us better in the weeks going forward.

"It's really on us now to bounce back as a group and respond. There's no better place to try and do that than in a Showdown."