After a month of close finishes, Ryan Lester says Brisbane is ready to stare down Collingwood in Friday night's blockbuster if the match comes down to the wire.
The Lions gave up a four-goal lead late in the last quarter of a round 18 loss against Melbourne, but since then have come up trumps in a number of tight finishes.
They steadied late against a fast-finishing Geelong, overcame Fremantle in Perth by three points and on Saturday iced a six-point victory over Adelaide by managing the clock in the final three minutes.
Read the match report from last week's win against Adelaide →
Speaking on Tuesday morning after inking a new one-year contract, Lester said Brisbane was ready for Collingwood's vaunted fourth quarters.
"Since the Melbourne game we've certainly practiced close finishes a few times and we've been able to put that on show the last two or three weeks," he said.
"We've won close games, which has been awesome for our confidence.
"There's no better practice than doing it on game day when there's actual, proper pressure.
"If that's what the game comes to on Friday night we're pretty comfortable that we're used to those situations now."
The Lions are hopeful of regaining Keidean Coleman to face the Magpies, with the young defender missing the past two matches with an eye injury.
They also need to make a decision on who replaces Jack Gunston (knee) after the veteran forward was injured at the weekend.
Read the Qscan injury report: Gunston & Rich →
Lester said Brisbane was excited about the chance to play at a sold-out Marvel Stadium, where a win would move it a step closer to a coveted top-two position.
"Any Friday night game is exciting to play in and Collingwood obviously have a great supporter base," he said.
"I'd suggest that most guys are looking forward to that challenge, that chance to play on Friday night.
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"We've got so many x-factor players in our team that thrive on those sort of games, like Cam Rayner and Zorks [Dayne Zorko] and Bails [Zac Bailey], Lachie Neale, those guys.
"I think most of us are excited to play."
Ruckman Oscar McInerney has added two years to his existing contract, tying him to the club until at least the end of 2026.
