Play anywhere, don't care: Top 4 travel holds no fear for Donga

“I am really looking forward to this weekend, we want to put our best foot forward and finish third, so it’s really exciting,” Donoghoe said.

“It's definitely a great feeling (getting the win over the Roosters in Sydney).

“Going down there, we knew it was going to be a tough challenge.

“I think that was the finals game itself, it had that finals feel about it.

“I think it definitely shows that we're ready to keep going for these finals and give it a red-hot crack.

“All the boys are really happy, but we can't get too far ahead of ourselves.

“We've got a job to do this week.

“With games like these, you can come unstuck and get a bit comfortable, so the message is really important this week to make sure that's not the case.”

While the Fiji international wanted to see his side keep their top three standing and finish as high as possible on the ladder – he did not have any preference on which team they met in their opening week of finals.

The Dolphins have played the Warriors twice this year, losing 20-18 in Wellington in Round 8 and winning 26-24 in Round 17 at Suncorp Stadium. Their encounter with the Panthers was another close classic, going down 19-18 in Round 7 during extra time in Darwin.

“To be honest, it doesn't bother me,” Donoghoe said of their Finals Week 1 opponents.

“I haven't really watched them too much to pay attention …

“But whoever wins, I don't even know where or what way the results have got to go or what's going on …

“I don't really care if we have to travel to New Zealand, we've done pretty well there in the past, so wherever we play, it's a good challenge for us.

“I think we're all just looking forward to being in the top four and playing whoever we have to verse.”

Having only just pipped the Titans 18-14 when they met in Round 2, the Gold Coast side have already shown they have the ability to beat top four sides, having accounted for the Panthers in Round 16, Donoghoe was on guard.

“They'll definitely be up for it,” Donoghoe said.

“The Titans are one of those teams, they can beat anyone on their day.

“They're so skilful, they've got so many good footy players, and it's at home, it's their last game of the year, they're going to want to get a win …”

However, the internal battle within the squad was another motivation for Donoghoe. He said the battle for positions – especially in the forward pack – had been a key factor in the side’s rapid lift from just missing the eight in the past few seasons to becoming top four.

“Everyone's fighting for spots, that's been a real big part of it as well,” Donoghoe said.

“Everyone's fighting for each other's positions.

“Our bench players still want to start, so it's a good little bit of competition we've got in the team.

“A lot of our efforts, we're fighting, (we've got) a little bit of competition inside the team.

“Everyone wants to start … and I just think that that helps us so much, having the internal battles between everyone.”