MELBOURNE veteran Jordan Lewis is bullish about the Demons doing some damage in the finals – provided they make it.
Sunday's clash with St Kilda at the MCG is a classic eight-point match for the two emerging teams.
Melbourne are 10th and St Kilda are 11th, with only percentage separating them from eighth-placed Essendon three weeks from the finals.
"We've shown this year that no matter who we come up against, if we perform the way we want to perform, we can beat anyone," Lewis said.
"It does provide a really good opportunity. It's exciting.
"I would say there are some sides in the competition that, if and when we make the finals, they'll be worried about playing us."
While the Demons have not made the finals since 2006, the business end of the season is old hat for Lewis.
He played in four Hawthorn premiership teams before joining Melbourne this season.
"I love it – this is what you play for. With so much riding on the line, it's when you want to perform as an athlete, as a footballer," he said.
"That's when you really want to play and gain that trust from your teammates.
"This week provides a great opportunity for guys to step up and make a name for themselves."
Melbourne opened the season with a 30-point win over St Kilda, but Lewis said a lot had changed since.
The Demons have won only one of their past four games.
"We're not playing our best football, (but) we feel that's not too far away," he said.
Lewis was speaking on Wednesday at Malvern Central Primary School, where his sister Chelsea is a teacher.
The school held its Footy Colours Day, a fundraiser for the Fight Cancer Foundation.
"Chelsea has done a power of work over the last five years to get them (students) to follow Hawthorn, so she's trying to change them back," her brother said.