Brisbane must go on a winning run to play NRL finals and coach Kevin Walters, confident they "certainly can", says the key to doing so is "all in the mind".
"What your mind tells you to do, you'll do," an upbeat Walters said.
The Broncos, in 10th position on 24 competition points, host Parramatta on Friday night and need to catch eighth-placed St George Illawarra, who are on 28 points but have a far worse for-and-against record.
The Broncos need to get to 30 points and hope the Dragons win no more than one of their remaining three matches.
"Look, it's not ideal, but there are still opportunities for us to progress through," Walters said.
"I know there's a lot of knockers out there, but they're knockers. That's why they're sitting there.
"We've got a strong team here, and a strong performance tomorrow night is what we're looking forward to.
"It's very exciting to still be alive this time of the year. I've got a lot of faith and belief in the team and what they can do."
Walters played in the 1993 Broncos side that clicked at the end of the season to win the premiership from fifth position with an unbeaten late run. Last year Newcastle won 10 games in a row to reach week two of the finals.
Brisbane's last performance, before their round-24 bye, was a superb comeback 42-18 win over North Queensland where captain Adam Reynolds and centre Kotoni Staggs led the team with aplomb. Walters said it was vital to back that up.
The coach also addressed comments from hooker Billy Walters, also his son, that only "fake fans" don't want Kevin at the helm long-term.
"Well you'd expect that from your son, wouldn't you. That was great from Bill, that's why he's in the team again this week," Kevin joked.
He said he had no issues with Broncos fans, but added that the club wasn't everybody's cup of tea.
"There's lots of people in the world that don't like the Broncos and we appreciate that," he said.
"There's more people though that do like the Broncos and that's what I get excited about ... our fans and the way their continual support has been amazing this year.
"We've got more members and more fans than any other club, so obviously on the flip side there's probably a lot of people out there that don't enjoy watching the Broncos."
Prop Payne Haas (foot) and fullback Reece Walsh (hand) won't play the Eels this week, but Walters said both would be back before season's end.
Canberra Times
