Dan Sheehan: These are the games you think about
Tomorrow, Andy Farrell is expected to name a side with a heavy Irish presence, even if injuries to Garry Ringrose and Mack Hansen may reduce the level of green in the matchday squad.
While spaces in the centre and back row appear to be up for grabs, other positions have been nailed down for some time.
After captain Maro Itoje, Ireland hooker Dan Sheehan is possibly the next automatic name on the team sheet.
Of all the predicted line-ups doing the rounds, only Ronan O'Gara has been so bold as to leave Sheehan out of his starting team, and the La Rochelle coach caveated his selection by saying he was keeping his stronger front row back in reserve.
There's a nervous energy in the air, and Sheehan wants to soak it all up.
"It's just an exciting week," the hooker (below) says of the mood-shift in Lions camp.
"These are the three games you think about when you talk about a tour.
"Everyone has been trying to put their best foot forward to be selected and it is a bit of an anxious wait to see what the selection is, but all we can do is put our best foot forward in training and do what's best for the team as a collective.
"Everyone has gone up another level, and the hunger is there to make sure you're on the teamsheet and produce a win on Saturday."
The 26-year-old has emerged as one of the key leaders in this Lions squad, even on his first tour, and was captain for the opening game of the tour against Western Force in Perth, scoring a try just three minutes into the game.
The Lions will come into their Test series against the Wallabies as heavy favourites to win, something they haven't done since their previous visit to Australia in 2013.
With Australian rugby at something of a low ebb, the expectation is to win well, rather than just win.
And while it risks offering free motivation to the Wallabies, Sheehan (below) says his side have set themselves a high standard to reach.
"Every team in the world wants to be the best team they've featured in. It hasn't changed in my mindset.
"You can juice up anything. I don't think that [expectation] is anything too crazy.
"It's obviously everyone's goal to win a Test series, and to try to be a step beyond the last squad.
"The way rugby has evolved, every team should be better than the last, and it's a massive goal of ours to make sure we reach our potential.
"I think if we do reach our potential, we have the possibility to be one of the best teams [in Lions history].
"It would be a good story and a good legacy to have a winning series. We haven't delved too much into the wider picture.
"We did at the start when we were trying to frame the mindset, but this week has been all about Saturday, and how our prep goes into winning this game on Saturday, and we're going to throw everything at that.
"There's going to be no holding anything back, or waiting for the next two Tests. It's all about Saturday.
"We're in a good spot. Lads are hungry, and we're expecting the Wallabies to be hungry. I think it'll be a good Test and fireworks on Saturday.
"We've seen it the last couple of years, they've probably been written up as underdogs and they've put in some massive performances, shaken some big teams."
Having blown hot and cold in several of their warm-up games, the Lions finally moved up a gear in their final pre-Test outing against an Australia and New Zealand invitational side last week, with a 48-0 hammering in Adelaide.
Sheehan wasn't involved, with the majority of the Test side rested ahead of this weekend in Brisbane.
The tight schedule of the games has been cited as a big reason for the lack of consistency in performance so far, with the Saturday-Wednesday games and accompanying travel limiting the amount of pitch time for training.
There will be one more midweek game in Melbourne next Tuesday, although the raft of recent call-ups will ensure the Test players won't have to double-up at Marvel Stadium next Tuesday against the First Nations and Pasifika XV.
As tough as the schedule has been, Sheehan says it has given the group a tough skin as they had towards the business end of the tour.
He said: "It's very unique, I think, because I've never in my professional career had to double up two games in a week and the amount of different games we've had to now.
"It's quite similar to a World Cup, just on steroids in some ways with the amount of games we have. It's been so enjoyable.
"Just talking to a lot of the lads, we've enjoyed the last two weeks of chaos and just having to make it work.
"I think that brings teams a lot closer as well. You might be a bit bumped and bruised and you just have to go out and fight for the guy beside you.
"He's only someone you've maybe known for four weeks and I think people gain respect that way.
"There is a different feeling around it because it's so new and it's with so many unfamiliar faces and I think we've been putting our own stamp on it well so far.
"I think we do have to find another level.
"The quality of opposition has gone up a considerable amount, especially on the back of the last couple of weeks where a lot of those teams are missing their big internationals.
"So we do have to be a lot better. We've had some close games in the last few weeks so we definitely need to step up."
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