A touch of the theatrical.

A sense of occasion.

The chance, with a veer here, a cut-back there, to turn the best-laid plans all topsy-turvy.

That’s what Roy Finch prides himself on most.

“There are some things,’’ the pocket-sized dynamo is saying in that burnished-suede-soft voice of his, “you just can’t teach.

“Some things’’ – two light taps on the left side of the chest – “come from within.

“For me, I like to think I play at my best whenever the stakes are highest. Well, starting now they couldn’t be any higher.

“Win or stay home.

“I love that kind of pressure.

“Absolutely love it.”

Photo by David Moll

Inarguably the most positive aspect of last Friday’s snowy, windswept, frostbitten season-closing loss to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers at McMahon Stadium was the welcome sight of No. 14 fielding punts and kickoffs again.

On a dull offensive night for the Stampeders, Finch always seemed to be the one most likely to jar them out of the doldrums.

Back from injury, prepping for Nov. 19 and the Western Final, he hauled back four punts for 40 yards and four kickoffs for 123, including a 51-yarder.

“I was out the three games before and I really wanted to get one in before playoffs,’’ Finch said. “Get the feel back.

“I thought we did OK. Kickoff returns, we averaged to the 45-yard line. I think we won the punt-return battle. (The Bombers) had some no-yards penalties, too.

“I just wanted to press my aiming point of where I should be going. Follow my keys. Follow my eyes. And that’s what I did.

“It’s like riding a bike, right? You never forget how. But you’d still like to take a couple rides around the block to get your legs feeling good.”

Once again, Finch topped the country in punt-return yardage this season, 1,200, taking three to The House, and tacked on another 692 via kickoffs, over only 13 games.

Next up: bringing some of that magic to the post-season.

“These next two weeks are so important for us in a lot of ways,” he says. “Getting our bodies right is No.1. Take time for that. You can’t perform if you’re body’s not feeling right. Be as ready as possible physically.

“Then get in the film room, look at the teams we could possibly play, see where we ourselves need to get better. Study.

“Nothing that happened before matters now. Getting to that Grey Cup and winning it is the only thing in our heads.”

That innate capacity Finch spoke of, to elevate and inspire, is something he uses as fuel.

Asked for a defining example in his experience, he unhesitatingly scrolls back a dozen years.

“Notre Dame-USC, 2005. Reggie Bush, that game he had against the Fighting Irish. People still talk about it. Tough game. At Notre Dame.

“I was 13 or 14. I remember watching it start-to-finish at home in Maryland. I remember recording and replaying the whole thing three or four times. Over and over.

“They were down and he literally willed them to victory, because of his heart. He’s still my favourite player, to this day.

“He had a lot of yards, like usual. But at the end he literally pushes (Trojan QB Matt) Leinart into the end zone to win the game. Remember that? The Bush Push. It’s illegal. But he did it anyway. Because he had to.

“His awareness for the game. His willing to do anything – anything – to help his team …

“I still Google it every once in a while. It still inspires me.

“The great players, they find a way to up their level.”

Photo by David Moll

Opponent, as yet undetermined. Weather conditions a guess, at best.

No matter. All Finch knows is that come-from-within time has arrived again. And that great players, be they from yesterday, today or tomorrow, find a way to up their level.

“Snowy? Negative 20 degrees? I don’t care. Doesn’t matter. I just want my hands on the ball so I can do my thing.

“The stakes are high.

“I know my team needs me.

“That’s when I shine.”