LIAM Bonner will have a pivotal role to play as Inverell launches its final push for a third successive Central North grand final appearance at Narrabri on Saturday.

The Highlanders head to the Blue Boars’ territory for their preliminary final, brandishing the scalp of defending premiers Moree after an impressive minor semi-final display a fortnight ago.

That was Bonner’s first finals taste with the Highlanders.

He is playing his first year with the club after returning home from a studying tenure in Townsville.

“It’s a lot of fun and everyone seems to be coming good at the right end of the year,” Bonner said.

The Highlanders were travelling into the finals with three successive losses – all against the three other finalists, but showed they could produce when the pressure was on.

“We worked with a lot of patience and defended well,” Bonner said after the win over the Bulls.

“Our defence was particularly good and we were able to attack from there.”

Their defensive effort got a lot of praise but their control was equally a factor and was something they had been inconsistent in producing.

“We didn’t have a lot of ball but when we had it we used it well,” Bonner said.

He has capably filled the number 10 spot and delivered the final pass for Simon Newton’s first try.

A similar move, this time involving Chad Makim, almost resulted in a second try.

The two – Newton and Makim – have been devastating on defensive lines all season, and are viewed as instrumental to the Highlanders’ chances.

Bonner has in his job description as five-eighth feeding them – hopefully – an abundance of ball and he said playing inside of them had made the transition easier.

The performance against the Bulls was a confidence boost and they will have to follow a similar script to beat the Blue Boars.

“Finals football is quite different. You’re playing to stay in the competition, so you’ve got to do that bit extra,” Bonner said.

He is one of only a couple of new faces in the Highlanders’ line-up, with the majority there last year when they reached the grand final in similar circumstances, winning the minor semi-final and then preliminary final.