Richmond coach Damien Hardwick admits his former assistant coach Justin Leppitsch will have some inside knowledge of his side, but insists the Tigers will not change their game plan when the teams clash at the Gabba on Thursday night.

"It's important, there’s no doubt, he's got an idea of the strengths and weaknesses of our players, also from a game plan point of view,” Hardwick said.

“Has a lot changed? A little bit, but at the end of the day, most sides know how each other plays; it's just who comes out and executes it the best on the day."

“It will be no different this week."

Hardwick is wary of Brisbane’s midfield strength and said that beating the Lions in the centre of the ground would be pivotal to the Tigers’ chances.

“Their midfield strength is fantastic. Obviously [Brent] Moloney is a huge player for them, the loss of [Daniel] Rich is enormous, too, but they do use the ball reasonably well.

Get your hands on your very own player named guernsey from the Tigerland Superstore

“They’ve got some real strong in-and-under types, like [Jack] Redden and these type of players, that can get under your guard.

“Trent West is a capable ruckman also, so we’ll have our battle cut out for us there.”

Richmond has a strong record at the Gabba in recent years and, while Hardwick believes Brisbane has improved since the sides last met, he is confident that the Tigers can get a positive result.

“The quality of the competition has improved and we’ve got to lift with the competition,” he said.

“They’ll come out firing and we expect nothing more of a Justin Leppitsch-coached side, so it’s going to be a really strong contest.”