"We know they're a quality opposition with some of the best players from Europe coming down here to play against us so we're just going to go out there with nothing to lose.
"We're just going to run out there and play some good old-fashioned Highlanders rugby in the glass house," said the 25-year-old Progressive Meats Havelock North premier men's player.
Apologetically tripping into the cliched zone of rugby jargon, Evans said the tourists were "a massive set-piece" team so provided the hosts took a coalface mindset to negate the ramifications of that everything else would fall into place.
"It starts up front for us so we have a massive job in terms of locking the scrum down and winning more lineouts balls because they strike a lot of penalties from there to play their game."
The Highlanders have taken stock of the tryless affair between the Lions and the Crusaders in Christchurch last Saturday night which the visitors won, 12-3, to inflict the season's first loss on the Super Rugby leaders.
Despite the "Warrenball" mind games to unsettle New Zealand-born Lions coach Warren Gatland, it seems the visitors did just enough to offer parochial fans here glimpses of what they may bring to the first test match against the All Blacks at Eden Park, Auckland, on June 24.
Putting on appropriate sprigs to ensure players don't lose their footing, as they did on a dewy AMI Stadium, won't be a factor tonight thanks to the roof at the venue of a city that is built on Scottish heritage.
The Lions have only two tries to date.
Last Saturday they butchered several chances as the boot of Owen Farrell got them through.
Nevertheless, their tenacity to restrict the Crusaders to one penalty kick also showed their discipline.
Evans said the line speed on the Lions' defence dictated terms.
"Crusaders ended up playing rugby they probably didn't want to play so from a defensive point of view that's where the Lions probably won the game."
However, the Dunedin hosts have made a name for themselves in playing a brand of rugby that has the propensity to render coaching manuals useless.
It seems former Highlanders coach Jamie Joseph, within reason, fostered such broken play and his interim successor, Scott McLeod, certainly hasn't coached that flair out of his troops while Tony Brown is away overseas.
Needless to say, the Highlanders, who the Crusaders agonisingly pipped 25-22 in referee's time with a 40m dropped goal from Mitch Hunt two Saturdays ago, shouldn't cause too much ruckus in the scrum battles tonight.
French referee Mathieu Raynal pinged the All Black front row of Joe Moody, Codie Taylor and Owen Franks four times for questionable engagement which Gatland described as "pre-loading" and not observing the designated gap.
The former Mooloo player has started a verbal stoush, after rugby scribes pooh-poohed the tourists, to dispel any suggestions they were going to become the whipping boys amid all the hoopla that they are the best Lions to tour here for many years.
Asked if Gatland's men would be intent on crossing the line tonight, Evans replied: "Well, hopefully not." He suspected the Lions would throw the ball around just as much as the hosts in a night of running rugby.
While they had lost the Smith playmakers, Ben and Aaron, as well as a few ABs Maori players, he said they would still be "deadly", not to mention midfielder Malakai Fekitoa, dropped as an AB.
"I'm sure he's had a couple of days to reflect on things and he's turning up at trainings looking pretty sharp so I wouldn't like to be the guy running out to him when he's got the ball," Evans said of Fekitoa.
Utility back Richard Buckman, returning to the Magpies fold, is fullback.
Evans said they would be tackling low and hard to immobilise the men in red, something the Blues had shown in their victory.
Gatland, he said, had taken pressure off his players well in fronting the media.
Evans' parents, Jenny and Dai, of Havelock North, arrived in Dunedin on Sunday night to help him sort out matters at his house.
"It's awesome to have them here," Evans said, revealing brothers Bryn Evans, ex-AB plying his trade in Europe, and Rhys Evans, a winemaker in Canada, were visiting Dunedin last month.
Dai said it would be fantastic to watch Gareth because they were proud of all their boys.
"We're just going to enjoy the day and it's a proud day for Gareth's Havelock North club so we wish him all the best."
