By Paul Keane

If we agree on 2018 as the starting point for Kilmacud Crokes' current golden era then the south Dublin side will celebrate a landmark occasion this Saturday afternoon at Croke Park.

The club's Leinster final appearance will be their 50th championship game since the start of that 2018 campaign when they went on to claim a first Dublin SFC title in eight years.

The stats that have been accumulated by Robbie Brennan's crew of players in that six-season period, between the start of 2018 and now, are nothing short of remarkable.

They've won 45 of the 49 championship games they've played in that period for starters, yielding four county titles, two Leinster wins and an All-Ireland success earlier this year.

That 2018 campaign also corresponded with the introduction of a new group format in Dublin and while Crokes could have afforded to lose a game or two, typically, they have left nothing to chance and boast a perfect record of 18 wins from 18 group games.

Records continue to tumble in front of the Stillorgan side like dominoes and if they beat Naas on Saturday they will become the first ever team to win three Leinster club football titles in a row.

Captain Shane Cunningham has been there every step of the way and described just what all that experience means now in practical terms.

"Personally, I really embrace the last 10, 15 minutes of games," said Cunningham. "Prior to that, you might be a little apprehensive about it but the last 10, 15 minutes of games now, especially if it's tight, we know we have the strength, we know we have it on the bench. So we look forward to it when it's tight like that. I think that goes for everyone throughout the team."

A win over Naas would also mark Crokes' 20th in a row in championship football. They haven't lost a championship match since Kilcoo sickened them with a late goal in the All-Ireland final at the beginning of 2021. If Crokes had just held out that day, they'd be 30 for 30 right now.

It hasn't all been plain sailing though and Crokes were actually underdogs for this season's county final against Ballyboden St Enda's. Truth be told, they should have been beaten by Raheny at the county semi-final stage. Luke Ward's goal for Crokes three minutes into stoppage time forced extra-time that day and they eventually scraped through 5-4 on penalties.

"Against Castleknock we were five or six points down after 10 minutes as well," noted Cunningham, referencing their Group 2, Round 2 encounter which they eventually won 4-14 to 1-14. "And look, Raheny should have beaten us, 100 percent. The way we performed that day wasn't good enough.

"Maybe Raheny was a kind of a turning point for us. We kind of realised that if we put in another performance similar to that, Ballyboden were going to beat us. Ballyboden were flying. In training, those two weeks really reflected that. It was really hard, intense training. I knew going into that game that we had stepped it up a notch."

Crokes comfortably took care of Eire Og in their Leinster opener but there were more nervous moments in the second-half of their provincial semi-final win over St Mary's, Ardee. Hosts St Mary's rattled off 1-5 without response in the third quarter of that game though Crokes eventually came through with five points to spare.

Galway All-Star Shane Walsh, who arrived midway through the 2022 season, has helped keep the winning run going but they have lost key players and encountered various challenges too. Paul Mannion has battled serious knee and ankle injuries in the last two years while fellow county man Craig Dias only returned to the team following injury for the Ardee game. Theo Clancy, their rising star full-back, missed that game with an illness. A number of other players left the group after October's county final win.

"Micheal Mullin, Cillian O'Shea, Conor Casey," said Cunningham, detailing the absentees. "Rory O'Carroll always says, 'next man up', no matter who it is. Anthony Quinn has come in in the last two games for a competitive debut and done really well. We don't dwell on who is missing. Mark O'Leary, for example, didn't play much last year. He's come in this year and he has probably been our standout player. There has always been an approach where you throw lads in and if they take that opportunity, they are in the team."

Crokes previously encountered Naas in an early 2022 Leinster final and a late 2022 provincial quarter-final, winning both times. Another win will carry a rich reward, the three-in-a-row, though it isn't necessarily what motivates Cunningham.

"The fear of failure motivates me," he said. "That's not just in football, it's not achieving the things you want to achieve generally. The fear of not starting would push you on, or the fear of not playing well in a game, of not playing well in front of your friends and family and Robbie. As a starting point, I'd look at those things more so."