PORT Adelaide captain Travis Boak has praised his team’s fighting spirit after its nine-point win over the Brisbane Lions on Sunday.

Boak played an instrumental role in the victory, collecting 27 disposals, and also worked hard defensively, laying six big tackles and a crucial shepherd 10 minutes into the final quarter when the game was hanging in the balance.

The skipper said the match was full of ‘finals-like pressure,’ and expected the remaining five rounds to be much the same.

“It was a fight all day and they (Brisbane) put super pressure on us and the last three weeks have been pretty tough games which is what the pointy end of the season is so to get that win under our belt is a pretty good result,” Boak said.

“These are the finals like games where you’ve got to have an arm wrestle and it’s going to go back and forth and to the guys credit they just kept fighting.”

The win followed the gutsy performance against St Kilda in round 17, where Port Adelaide found itself behind with 10 minutes to play in the final quarter, but managed to scrape through with a five point win.

“In the past we probably would have let games like these ones slip and there was a lot of contested ball and we weren’t able to score at times, but it was an absolute arm wrestle and we just kept fighting,” Boak said.

Despite the win and being well-placed to make the finals for the first time since 2007, Boak like his coach Ken Hinkley, was reluctant to look any further than next Sunday’s Showdown against the Adelaide Crows.

“The belief is there and the confidence is there and we are taking some really good steps forward in getting some respect back, so we will continue to do that and that’s what we are focusing on and we know the Showdown is going to be a big week so we are looking forward to it