It's why their clash with Southern Cross University at Stuart Park on Saturday looms as a vital match in the context of their season.

If they keep winning, they'll secure second spot on the ladder and more than likely avoid the Vikings until grand final day.

"Second is where we deserve to be considering the amount of injuries we've had this season," coach Nigel Harding said.

With the finals just around the corner, it is now time for Pirates to "step up".

"They're well aware that they only have a few more weeks to go and this can be a discarded season or we can make something out of it," Harding said.

"I think they have suddenly realised we can make something out of it.

"Attitude is a lot more positive, they're a lot more willing to adhere to advice and act upon that advice and be positive in their own feedback."

The coach admitted his team also wasn't at a level where they could focus on specific elements of their game to improve on week by week.

"I'd love to be able to say let's try different things and extend our capabilities but we're not up to that yet," he said.

"We still need to put ourselves in a position to win the game."

Should Pirates continue to take small steps over the next couple of weeks they would give themselves the best chance of competing with the Vikings.

"If we take a couple of good steps over the next couple of weeks, then we'll bridge the gap," Harding said.

"If everyone does one really good thing well, somewhere along the game we will have done 15 things really well as a minimum and then we can build on that."

First grade kicks off at 3.15pm on Saturday.

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