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Kilkenny v Tipperary

There is only one thing better than watching the hurling final on TV and that is being there yourself. Unfortunatly my county didn't make it that far this year due to Limerick taking a dive during the qualifiers but that's another story.

What we do have is a return of the old enemies in Tipp and Kilkenny who would not have been favorites at the start of the year. With that said they are two of the most successful teams in the game and it's not exactly a surprise either.

They are always there or there about at the end of season.

While I don't know who will win the game I do know that it will be one hell of a battle. It always is. There is no love lost between these two teams as they have met each other so often over the past ten years and while there is massive respect for each other it will be no holds barred once the whistle goes.

Tipp were lucky to get through the last game as Wexford had a melt down for the last 10 minutes of time and snuck through with their experience. Kilkenny don't have the talent they used to when sitting at the summit but squeezed past Limerick with non stop work rate and intensity that no team could live with.

I do love the hurling final. It will be a full house of 87000 thousand fans packed into Croke Park the Gaelic Stadium with fans turning up to the capitol city all weekend to get into the mood. While everything is on the line it's always refreshing to see how well the fans can mix and get on woth each other even in the heat of the match. There will be plenty cursing, a lot of abuse and even some tears before the weekend is over. But at the end of it all they will shake hands with the enemy and head to coppers for the night out. It's a special sport and this is the big one. Can't wait for Sunday to watch it and if you have sky sports it will be shown there too. I highly recommend it.