"Who else would you want to beat in a final?" - Coill Dubh captain Johnny Byrne

It is Coill Dubh and Naas in the 2023 UPMC Senior Hurling Championship final and there is no better man to speak to about the history of this fixture than captain Johnny Byrne ahead of what is a classic Kildare hurling showdown.

“We did the double in 2014 and ‘15. Then in 2019 we won the league and lost the County final, so that would have been the last time we were here. But 2015, that was the golden time,” Byrne said.

2019 is now four years ago and Coill Dubh have seen an initial drop-off and now resurgence in that period.

“I don’t think anything has changed, we kinda got something back. The main thing was (getting back) the hunger, drive and the belief that was kinda gone. When we were talking about those names that were finishing up, we knuckled down and we believed again and that we wanted it,” Byrne explained.

The return of motivation for Coill Dubh aligns with the return of the manager for that SHC double in 2014 and ‘15 Paddy Kelly.

“As soon as we heard this time around that Paddy was interested, everyone got a bit of buzz, and that goes back to what we were saying, that’s what drives us and Paddy is a man to drive a team on.

“(He has brought in) as much hurling as possible, even if you're a hurler with not that much skill or if you are one of the lads that is always looking for the ball, there is mutual respect for every single player who puts on that jersey. Whether you are getting a game or not, you are treated with great respect and we are always going to be pushing on for the right goal. That’s what the manager is doing, he is not singling out anything or just focusing on the key men, he is always talking about everyone.”

Byrne had great things to say for the returning manager, but the praise wasn’t limited to the sideline as he was questioned on the exemplary Coill Dubh defence that has taken them so far this year.

“Mark Grace at full-back, you could say he’s the best in county there and you could look into other counties too. He organises the lads around him and I don’t think many lads will get by Conor Gordon without feeling a bit red or sore afterwards,” Byrne said.

“Big Declan (Flaherty), any high ball that comes in he will be mopping up.”

A team that has gotten plenty of acclaim over recent years, and for good reason, is the Coill Dubh’s imperious final opponents Naas.

The Coill Dubh captain was very direct when asked about the prospect of facing the side going for five Senior Championships in a row.

“All we can do is look at every game we play, Naas are a good side but who else do you want to beat in a final.

Adding, “You can take it as an underdog going in, but there is only going to be one winner coming out of it. Naas have been good for the last five years, there is no doubt about it. You can look at the names and players that they have and you might as well say they have 25 players on a county panel. If we can have two on the county panel and beat them, it won’t matter.”

“The father and my uncles would have played in lots of them (Naas vs Coill Dubh finals),,Like we would have had at underrage with all these players. Plenty of history there between us but plenty of respect too.”

Coill Dubh and their evergreen captain appear as ready as ever to halt the drive for five.