Cuala and Na Fianna have the chance to create history at Croke Park.
No club has ever won both the Leinster senior football and hurling titles.
Kilmacud Crokes and St Vincent’s have seven Leinster football titles each, but they never managed to win the small ball decider. Crokes went close, reaching the hurling final in 2022, losing out to Ballyhale Shamrocks of Kilkenny by three points.
Neighbours Ballyboden have fewer football titles – winning the province in 2015 and 2019 – but they have reached two hurling finals. Unfortunately for the Firhouse Road outfit, both finals ended in defeat, losing out to Birr by a gut wrenching point in 2007, before shipping a 16-point trouncing at the hands of Ballyhale 11 years later.
Incredibly, though, two Dublin clubs have the chance to complete the Leinster double this weekend, and create history as the first clubs to do so in the history of the provincial club championships.
First up it’s Cuala, whose hurlers won provincial crowns in 2016 and 2017. Their footballers, appearing in the Leinster final for the first time, are up against surprise package St Mary’s of Ardee at 5:40 tomorrow at Croke Park.
Forward with the Dalkey club Luke Keating says Mary’s have impressed him.
“They’ve they’ve won two or three Louths in a row, so they were probably coming, and probably no surprise that they’re at this stage,” he told FM104 Sport ahead of the game.
“We were probably a little bit more out of the blue but they’ve been making progress each year, and ran [Kilmacud] Crokes very close last year in Leinster.
“So it’s no surprise really that they’ve gotten this far and with their with their form.”
The second game at Croke Park will be the hurling final, as Na Fianna look to emulate their senior footballers, who won the Leinster title in 1999, when they take on Offaly’s Kilcormac-Killoughy from 7:40.
Only Cuala (twice) and Crumlin have gone on to add provincial honours to their Dublin crowns in the history of the competition.
After coming so close last year, losing in the decider by a point against O’Loughlin Gaels, it’s a chance for the Mobhi Road men to take that final step this time around.
Defender Kevin Burke says that even though they lost the final last year, it can still help them to make things right tomorrow evening.
“It was a loss, but it was only a one point loss at the very end of the game,” he pointed out this week.
“We did perform quite well, which is quite a positive thing to look back on given it’s very different for lads to be playing at Croke Park.
“It’s great experience for lads that have that day under their belt. There are a couple of new lads now in this year, but it’s great to have a majority of the squad having got that day out last year in Croker, so that it’s not a completely new surroundings.
“So hopefully that stands to us as well, even if it’s the difference of a point or two in the game, it could make all the difference.”
Elsewhere, it’ll be another Dublin versus Kerry battle in Stillorgan at 2pm tomorrow.
Kilmacud Crokes and Castleisland Desmonds are set to clash in the women’s All-Ireland club semi-final in Stillorgan.
While St Vincent’s will look to end the weekend on a high when they meet Truagh-Clonlara in the All-Ireland camogie semi-final in Walsh Park from 2pm on Sunday.
FM104 is official media partner of Dublin GAA.
