THE GAMEPLAN is important, but Brisbane dynamo Zac Bailey says beating Collingwood on Saturday will come down to doing the simple things better.

The Lions and Magpies are no strangers to playing one another, with the preliminary final their eighth clash in the past three seasons, including the 2023 Grand Final.

Bailey said there had been a clear pattern for success during September, and the Lions would have to adhere to it at the MCG if they want to qualify for a third straight decider.

“It’s all around pressure,” Bailey said.

“If you look at all the finals, the team that’s won that area is going on to win the game.

“Collingwood are the No.1 pressure side in the game, so it’s a big area (of focus).

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“We played Gold Coast last week, who plays similar to Collingwood, so we can take a bit from that.

“It’s good to get a little bit of experience playing against that sort of game style that we can take into this week.”

Despite playing without injured two-time Brownlow medallist Lachie Neale, Brisbane got the better of Gold Coast through the middle of the ground last weekend.

Josh Dunkley played a huge role in that, setting the tone with his finals-record 18 tackles.

He was able to quell the influence of Matt Rowell and could be set for another mighty challenge against Nick Daicos.

“We don’t usually tag, but I think in the past Josh Dunkley has gone to him around stoppages, so if he does get off the chain a little bit, I’m sure we’ll have some plans in place to solve that,” Bailey said.

“The midfield is a massive battle, even just getting territory from centre bounce is really important.

“They’ve got the quality midfield, as do we, so it’s going to be a really good battle.”

Brisbane will fly to Melbourne on Thursday afternoon, a day earlier than it would during the home and away season, to prepare for the match.

The Lions will hold their captain’s run at Marvel Stadium on Friday morning.