MELBOURNE was gallant in defeat on Sunday afternoon, but Bayley Fritsch says his side needs to be better.

The Dees went down to West Coast by 13 points at TIO Traeger Park after having plenty of chances to get ahead of the game.

“Unfortunately, West Coast are a good side and if we can’t play four quarters of footy it’s not going to get the job done,” Fritsch told Melbourne Media post-game.

After trailing by 20 points at the first break, the Demons played inspired footy to hit the front at three quarter-time.

But with Jack Viney ruled out of the contest with concussion, the Eagles were able to gain control in the centre and run away with the four points.

“They were stronger for longer I suppose,” Fritsch said.

“They just got on top [around the ball] and we couldn’t match it.

“That was disappointing, but we’ll review that and come out bigger and better next week.”

Melbourne prides itself on winning the ball in the midfield and being hard at the contest, and Clayton Oliver (34 disposals) led the way for his side in that area.

But after the Dees were plus 21 for contested possessions in the third term, the Eagles regained the ascendancy in the latter stages of the match.

“Our contested ball was up and the game was looking how we wanted it, it’s just really unfortunate that we let that slip in the last quarter,” Fritsch said.

For much of the year, the Demons’ accuracy in front of goal has been problematic, and it let them down again in Round 18.

Some simple chances went begging early, with five behinds kicked in the first quarter alone, leaving West Coast in control.

“When you get those chances in front of goal you’ve got to try to consolidate on the scoreboard,” Fritsch said.

“Scoreboard pressure is massive in a game of footy so that was disappointing.”

While the missed opportunities hurt the red and blue, Fritsch’s individual effort inside 50 was a highlight for the game.

The 22-year-old, who was recruited from the Casey Demons as a versatile forward, returned to the attacking half of the ground and booted four goals for his side.

“I got drafted as a forward so it was good to play back down there but I’m just really disappointed with the loss,” he said.

Fritsch took 14 marks and had 22 disposals in an impressive effort and will be exciting to watch in the last five weeks of the season.