FIRST-year Western Bulldog Liam Picken says his side is quickly moving on from its 14-point loss to Geelong in the second qualifying final at the MCG on Saturday afternoon.

With the Dogs still in the hunt for their first flag since 1954, due to their double-chance, Picken said it was important to focus on their second semi-final clash next Friday night  against the Brisbane Lions or Carlton at the MCG.

"[We] just [want to] move on to next week. Just get to training on Monday, train hard and get read for Friday night," he said post-match.

"The last three weeks [have been like an elimination final]. We finished top four and earned the right to have the double chance. We can't take any negative vibes into the game."
 
The run-with midfielder, who spent the majority of the match on Shannon Byrnes but also played on Paul Chapman, Gary Ablett and Simon Hogan, said a slow start was costly for the Dogs.

"The first quarter was disappointing; they came out and kicked a few goals and we were playing catch up all day," Picken said.

"We just had a slow start. I don't know if it was our mindset or what, but they just came out and played a lot better in that first quarter.

"Five goals down, we knew we had to run hard and get back into the game and it took its toll, but we were fit enough to come back from that. It was just a disappointing first quarter.

Picken said that after being beaten by the Bulldogs in round 21, the Cats lifted their intensity this time around .

"They came out fired up and got us on the back foot straight away. That's how they improved. Last time we started off really well and were in front for most of the day, but we were just playing catch-up all day today," he said.

Picken, who has been one of the competition's success stories this year after starting the season on the rookie list, said he had gained plenty from his first final. But he wasn't fully able to appreciate how far he had come in 2009.

"You're playing in the moment. You don't look around or take it in. You've got to play in the moment, so I didn't think about it," he said.

"I've got experience now. Obviously we've got to move on to next week and hopefully we can back up and get back on the winners list.

"I've got a few areas to work on, but it was a reasonable game ... we've just got to look forward to Friday night."