MOSTLY HURLING:Sheedy's men will have to get their tactics and player positioning spot on to have any chance of dethroning those wonderful champions, writes JOHN ALLEN

SURELY IT’S all been said and written about these wonderful champions, Kilkenny. Playing on the edge . . . high intensity, high octane . . . in training games Brian Cody rarely blows the whistle . . . the team that hooks and blocks the most wins the games, ie Kilkenny . . . their work ethic is tops . . . any showboating and you’re brought ashore fairly lively . . . the Cats have a marvellous facility to put players into space and provide telling passes . . . Kilkenny don’t do sentiment as many teams along the five-in-a-row road have found out to their cost . . . simplicity is the order of the day . . . no magic formula about the training, it’s usually just some drills, some sprints and a game and maybe some backs and forwards . . . Kilkenny are experts at the cynical professional foul . . . the current Cats outfit are, in many ways, awesome . . . they are ruthless in crucial situations . . . Kilkenny’s overpowering harassment of players either in possession, or attempting to gain possession, is a fundamental of their play . . . the best hurling team ever . . . and on and on.

This journey began in 2006. In the build-up to that year’s final the odds were stacking up favourably on Cork’s side. There weren’t any injuries and training had gone according to plan. On a training weekend in west Cork two weeks out the news filtered through that JJ Delaney had done his cruciate and was out for the final (no miracles back then). Centre back John Tennyson was already very doubtful with a shoulder injury. Even if he was passed fit he would be very short on hurling sharpness we thought.

I met the late Fr Troy (coach to the last Cork three-in-a-row champions) that same week. Very positive sign for a team heading for three titles in succession given I hadn’t previously met him in a decade.

The planets in the Cork hurling world seemed to be aligning just at the right time of the year.

However, Kilkenny had a new script and began their own planet realigning on that September Sunday. On this Sunday they hope to boldly go where no man or team has gone before.

So can Tipperary scupper this latest historic voyage?

Well, they’ve taken the circuitous route which I’ve no doubt was not part of their original plan. But as Scottish poet Robert Burns wrote, “The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men /Gang aft agley.” I’ve little doubt but the Tipperary masterplan didn’t include being beaten by Cork in their first game.

But like the teams in the football semi-finals they’ve travelled the long route and have learned a lesson from every game. Liam Sheedy and his management team know a lot more about their team than they knew at this time last year whereas Kilkenny haven’t really been tested this year and consequently haven’t had to run the forensic tests.

Tipperary are on a revenge mission, while Kilkenny are on an historic voyage. Both reasons to push to the limits are equally significant though.

Last year the Tipp men played a very tactical game with Brendan Cummins as the conductor and Lar Corbett as the forward principal. They ticked all the boxes on match day and had Kilkenny on the backfoot when a controversial penalty decision became the turning point in the game and the main talking point afterwards.

They will approach Sunday’s game with a lot of confidence. They have a team with good mix of youth and experience. Most of their younger players have the invaluable experience of having played in a final. The six backs that started this year’s semi-final all played in the opening game against Cork, albeit four of them in different positions. Their midfield partnership of Shane McGrath and Brendan Maher have seen action in different positions since the Cork game but now are regarded as the best available in the county.

Four of the forwards who started the semi-final started the Cork game. Eoin Kelly, Lar Corbett and Noel McGrath are among the top forwards in the game and will play key roles in Sunday’s game, probably in a variety of positions. John O’Brien, who played in last year’s final, will need to have the game of his life, as will newcomers Patrick Maher and Gearóid Ryan.

Kilkenny, on the other hand, have a team full of experience and big game players. The ongoing hype surrounding Henry Shefflin and John Tennyson is creating a welcome five-in-a-row decoy. We all want to see the great players playing on the big occasions and I sincerely hope both play some part in this historic game. It seems like the unlucky Brian Hogan won’t. However, given the extraordinary medical surprises of the past fortnight in Kilkenny, we won’t rule anybody out before 5 o’clock on Sunday.

So who is going to win? Well Tipp showed last year they were able to match Kilkenny’s intensity. They have more momentum going into this game, given the closeness of their semi-final game and the progress of their under-21 team with their five senior players. Their forward mix is probably better this year.

However, their backline conceded three goals against Cork and Galway and a repeat will mean defeat.

Tipp will have to get their tactics and player positioning spot on on Sunday to have a chance of winning. It’s well known at this stage Kilkenny keep their shape very well, with the half backs very hesitant to cross their own 45. But then Tipp know all of that. In the past fortnight we’ve had blow by blow accounts of Kilkenny training. The Tipp camp has been low profile. But now battle time is approaching and the silent Tipperary might surprise the hurling world.

Their planet alignment is due to begin on Sunday at 3pm when Kelly, Cummins, O’Mahony, McGrath, Corbett and the chosen other 10 explode out from the bowels of the Hogan Stand in tight conjunction. All 15 stars will fit within a circle just before throw in, beaming together through the mid-afternoon autumnal daylight. No telescope is required to enjoy this naked-eye event. Their time has come.