With no points and no captain after three Sheffield Shield matches this season, Western Australia’s situation can only improve.

That’s if you take the positive view, and that’s definitely the word coming from Mike Hussey.

The Test batsman was acting captain for the Warriors in their Shield loss to Victoria at the MCG.

But Hussey, who gave a typically-gritty performance in scoring 65 on a lively pitch in Western Australia’s first innings of 248, says he’s proud of the efforts of his men against a team including Test quicks Peter Siddle and James Pattinson and Test gloveman Matthew Wade.

“We’ve been able to play a brand of cricket that’s definitely competitive against almost a Test-standard Victoria team and to have them under a lot of pressure,” Hussey said.

The last-placed Warriors will host South Australia at the WACA Ground from November 12 to 15 and they’ll have to find a captain before then, following Marcus North’s shock resignation.

North, whose classy knock of 87 on Thursday helped the Warriors claim a first-innings lead of 29, had said three days earlier he was quitting the captaincy for form reasons.

The WACA said former Test batsman Shaun Marsh had been dropped for this week’s MCG game for form reasons, although the cloud of controversy over the Perth Scorchers’ booze-fuelled and unsuccessful Champions League Twenty20 campaign in South Africa last month continues to hang over the Warriors.

“It’s going to be a really interesting time for the team. We do need some strong leadership there,” Hussey said.

“I don’t know what they’re going to do captaincy-wise.

“It’s a very important time for Western Australia cricket.”

Hussey cautioned against handing the captaincy to Shaun Marsh’s brother Mitchell Marsh, whose 21st birthday celebrations in Cape Town sparked an official WACA investigation into player behaviour.

Mitchell had a quiet match against Victoria, scoring two and a duck and taking two wickets in the first innings but not bowling in the second because of a heel complaint.

“If it was me, I’d probably go for more of an experienced player at the moment. He had success with the Australian under-19s (as captain),” Hussey said.

“I’d like to see him keep learning the game first.”