“We haven’t won too many games in the last two and a half years, so I’ll take every single one of them,” he said.
“Every (victory) that we can get will be special for the commitment and the effort the players put in.”
Poor starts have been a common theme in Melbourne’s recent interstate losses, but the Demons were able to buck the trend and open up what turned out to be a match winning five-goal lead at half time.
Bailey was delighted by his side’s ability to come out and get the job done, particularly given the focus on the Demons after last weekend’s victory.
“We played well last week and it was going to be a challenge to see how we responded this week,” he said.
“To travel interstate and come to the Gabba where we don’t perform that well; to play well and get a win is very important for our group of players.”
It’s a cliché, but it really was a game of two halves, with Melbourne dominating the first half and the Lions surging in the second half.
Bailey believed poor choices going forward played a role in the lack of scoring chances in the second half, but was quick to praise the Lions’ pressure.
“Our decisions going inside 50 cost us,” he said.
“But there is pressure from them and when we turned the ball over they made us pay.”
Although his side has won three from four and is sitting just a game and a half outside the top eight, Bailey would not be drawn into discussion about September action.
“Our focus is Richmond (next week) and we need to get to the game and perform well.”
“As long as we keep competing and winning quarters, which is what we have been doing, we just need to focus on that.”
