JOSH Drummond is confident the Brisbane Lions can overcome Matt Maguire's absence if the in-form fullback is ruled out of Sunday's match against Melbourne at the Gabba.

Maguire sustained an elbow injury against the Western Bulldogs last weekend and was substituted during the first quarter of the Lions' 58-point win.

He has been cleared of any fracture but is undergoing daily scans and testing to assess his availability.

Drummond played as a key defender against the Bulldogs once Maguire went off, and said the Lions had the men to cover if the former Saint was ruled out.

"No doubt it'd be a big loss for us. He's been terrific," Drummond said.

"It probably helps a bit that Mitch [Clark] has gone down as well which is unfortunate for him.

"It'll just depend on match-ups with how we go. Niall [McKeever] has been good for us the last few weeks and is starting to find his feet at that level. Joelly [Patfull] and myself have the ability to play tall, so we'll just wait and see how Melbourne line up."

Vice-captain Drummond said although it was important the back six locked down their men, the Lions had success against the Bulldogs because of their defensive pressure all over the ground.

"You talk defence and think of the back six, but defence in modern footy is the 18 guys out on the field," he said.

"The pressure through the midfield and from our forwards was terrific and it makes our job easier when that happens. I think that's the blueprint going forward, making sure that's consistent."

The Lions (5-7) and Melbourne (2-10) are both in the bottom six, but have both won two of their past three matches.

Drummond said the Lions were particularly primed for last week's win as it led into the club's inaugural Hall of Fame dinner in Melbourne that night.

While there was a risk of a let-down this weekend, he had seen no sign of it to date.

"I can tell the way the boys have attacked training this week there's been no change from last week or the week before," Drummond said.

"That's what's allowed us to play more consistent football, no ups and downs, not relying on the coaches to give us a spray to fire us up, we've been driving that ourselves as a playing group.

"Melbourne's confidence would be high, they had a good win on the weekend and have performed consistently for a few weeks now.

"From what I can see there's been no let-down at all, and I think we're just hungry to continue with that momentum."

Michael Whiting covers Brisbane Lions news for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_mikewhiting