FREMANTLE coach Ross Lyon believes his side's finals hopes are well and truly alive despite the 28-point loss to Adelaide on Saturday.

Fremantle is locked in a three-horse race with Essendon and North Melbourne for seventh and eighth spot on the ladder, and hosts Richmond next weekend before facing North Melbourne and Melbourne before the end of the season.

With Essendon and North Melbourne playing each other on Sunday, a win for Fremantle would have seen the side sneak into the eighth position with three rounds to go.

But despite going goal-for-goal with the Crows 13 times in the second half at AAMI Stadium, they fell away late in the game.

In typical Ross Lyon style, the coach proclaimed his club's season was far from dead.

"I don’t think you have to be a rocket scientist to figure, what are we 11-8? With how many games to go? Three? I think we're alive," he said.

"[We have] got two games at Patersons, one in Melbourne, they're big games and they're the ones that we want to be in and it's really an acute part of the season, so [there is] not too much room for error, but we're certainly in control of our own destiny.

"To come out against the number two team in the competition and do what we did, there's a bit to learn out of that, there's a bit to like and a lot to improve on."

Lyon said missed opportunities in front of goal hurt the side early in the match, as Fremantle entered the main break with a 28-18 lead in inside 50s, but trailed the Crows by four points.

He conceded Adelaide's midfield got on top in the second half, something made easier for the Crows due to the late withdrawal of young gun Nat Fyfe.

In bizarre circumstances, Fyfe was said to have rolled his ankle in his hotel room on Saturday morning, although an agitated Lyon could not shed any light on how severe Fyfe's injury was.

"Quarter past 10 I got a call, he's rolled he's ankle in his room, I haven't spoken to Nathan except when he came in with the doctors to say he's not right," Lyon said.

"He rolled his ankle, I haven't had a conversation with him, he did it this morning, they walked him in, they said 'he's out', I said 'no worries, Lachie (Neale), you're in, (Nick) Suban, you're off the sub'.

"I haven't seen him - he's back in his hotel room icing."

Fyfe's late omission was compounded by the loss of forward Chris Mayne at half-time after he was concussed in the second quarter.

Lyon said he didn't have any details on Mayne's condition, except that he suffered a knock to the head and couldn't continue in the second half.

"(The doctor said) he's struggling a bit, he can't continue, so once the doc says that there's no discussion from there," he said.

"It was a knock to the head, he was struggling, can't play, I said 'no worries doc, you're the boss in these situations' and we finish up."

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Harry Thring covers news for AFL Media. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_Harry.