Brisbane has been so bad against Richmond over the past decade that not even Lincoln McCarthy could believe the horror record when informed on Monday. 

The Lions have lost an incredible 12 straight matches against the Tigers since their last victory in round seven, 2009. 

"They've got 12 on us?" McCarthy queried, when asked by reporters at a South Bank recovery session.

"So, we haven't beaten them for the last 12 games? I didn't know that.

"We hadn't beaten Geelong since 2013 either.

"I think we're really embracing these challenges or hoodoos or whatever you want to call them like any other game.

"It's another motivating factor for us if we haven't beaten a side for so long, it's just another challenge."

McCarthy played a huge part in snapping an eight-game losing streak against the Cats on Saturday, taking a spectacular grab and kicking the match-winning goal with 90 seconds remaining. 

In a remarkable season that has put Brisbane on top of the competition ladder with one round remaining, the Lions have overturned a raft of long-time losing streaks.

Until 2019 they hadn't beaten Sydney for 11 games, West Coast and Geelong for eight, Adelaide for seven and North Melbourne and GWS for six.

Now the white-hot Tigers await on Sunday, with a win for the Lions guaranteeing top spot and a week one home final.

McCarthy said the prospect of playing in front of a big MCG crowd – bigger than many of the young Lions would have seen – at a venue they traditionally struggled at, would not be an issue.

"Grounds don't really faze us, it's just another game of footy," he said.

"We're going to try and put it up to Richmond and treat it like any other week. 

"We've only played one game there (MCG) this year, that alone is an exciting factor for us and having numbers there is all the more reasons for us to show up and bring our best game."