Gaelic Games: All across the country club footballers have been dragging themselves out on these cold winter nights, no doubt sprinting up some ridiculous hill with the dream of playing on the All-Ireland stage. Right now only four clubs teams are living that dream, the ones who contest Sunday's All-Ireland football semi-finals., Ian O'Riordan talks to Declan Darcy of the St Brigid's success story

The thoughts of winning are balanced by the thoughts of just being there. Especially for a team like Dublin champions St Brigid's, whose past year has already qualified as a dream season. Declan Darcy, who has spent the best part of his career waiting for an occasion like this, it's something to savour.

"It has come as a great lift for me," he says, "and I never thought my career would end this way. To win the Dublin championship had always been a real goal for myself. The same for a lot of the other players, especially the older ones. And we have had some hard knocks over the last four or five years, so to win that and then Leinster was incredible. And of course every club player dreams about getting to Croke Park on St Patrick's Day. And we're one game away from that now, and that would be just fantastic."

What has helped drive Darcy's playing career into his 30s is that commitment to club football. Though born and raised in Dublin he famously started that career in Leitrim, where he won a Connacht title in 1994. Four years later he made his debut with his native Dublin, and also re-rooted himself with the Blanchardstown-Castleknock club St Brigid's.

Now he feels the special bond that has developed within the club's senior team is one of the prime reasons why they are now looking forward to meeting Kerry champions An Ghaeltacht in the All-Ireland semi-final, which has a 2 p.m. start in Thurles. The idea of St Brigid's being some sort of super club based mostly on foreign imports is clearly a major misconception.

"I think there are a few factors behind the success this season. A lot of the main players had been a little young for the past few years now, but are coming into the hardened age now at 25 to 27. The likes of Peadar Andrews and Ken Darcy.

"But this panel has also developed a great bond. We all socialise together, and then you have a lot of brothers on the team as well, which I think is crucial at club level. You get that a lot in the successful country clubs and we're lucky to have that too. And there's no way we would have got this far without that bond.

"And if you look at the team that won the Leinster final there were 11 home-grown players. Myself and Ken and the two Gallaghers are the only four players you could in any way call outsiders."

The other main factor behind the success is on the sidelines and the work of Gerry McEntee and Paddy Clarke. "Definitely," he says, "the one other big thing is the real steel edge that Gerry McEntee has brought to this team. That was lacking before so between Paddy Clarke's training and Gerry's new attitude I think the club has gained a fantastic asset. And certainly there's no way we'd be at where we are now without them."

Darcy admits the Leinster final win over Round Towers of Kildare on the first Sunday of last December already seems like a whole other season ago.

"It was a little difficult over the New Year, which always brings its distractions. But then I'm sure the other three teams left in there have had the same problems as us. And they all appreciate where they are now.

"Plus it's been very nice to be training for an All-Ireland semi-final, as opposed to going back and doing the standard training for another club season. Especially all those stamina runs we were doing this time last year in the Phoenix Park racecourse.

"So overall I think the preparations have gone as well as they could. After the long break I think all the teams will be a little unsure about how they'll come into the game and play, and how good their appetite will be. But I know we're going to give it a right good crack. We haven't had too many injuries, so things have worked out quite well for us."

St Brigid's are set to go with the same starting line-up as won in Leinster, although the left-corner forward position, held last time out by John Noonan, has been for now left vacant. If Noonan doesn't start it may be that Barry Cahill is brought back in as a third midfielder. Darcy will start again at right-half forward, next to Rory Gallagher and Declan Lally.

One thing Darcy is not overlooking is the fact An Ghaeltacht have a very strong panel of their own: "Plus they have some phenomenal individual stars, and Kerry are still the purest footballers you can get. So they will look the part. But I think our style won't be that far off of theirs, and we can open up defences quite well. So I feel whoever gets going with the better momentum on the day will win it."

Everyone associated with St Brigid's is expected to show up in Thurles, most of which will travel down tomorrow, with the club car Bridgie III. The team though will wait until Sunday morning, and plan to get in and out as quick as they can, and hopefully do the business in the same manner.

ST BRIGID'S (SF v An Ghaeltacht): P Keane; K Keane, D Cahill, M Cahill; G Norton, P Andrews, M Galvin; K Darcy, J Ward; D Darcy, Rory Gallagher, D Lally; K Bonner, Raymond Gallagher, AN Other.