Kilkenny have been a hard itch for Tipperary to scratch during Brian Cody’s time as manager of the Cats.
More often than not, narrow defeats have been the order of the day for the Premier County in a latter day rivalry that has produced some classic contests.
RTÉ analyst Anthony Daly is expecting a change of fortune in Sunday’s All-Ireland final between the counties and goes with Tipperary to wrestle the Liam MacCarthy cup from Kilkenny’s grasp.
Speaking on Morning Ireland, the former Clare captain said: "I think if you look Tipp’s overall strength in the championship, coupled with the loss of Michael Fennelly for Kilkenny, then you have to give them a great chance.”
Daly also believes that the approach taken by new boss Michael Ryan and his team selections have given the Premier County an added dimension.
"Michael Ryan has adopted a more direct style of play this year as compared to the Eamon O'Shea style and it’s really paying dividends," he outlined.
"They have gone long in supplying good ball into the likes Dan McCormack and Patrick Maher, who certainly is back to his best at centre forward. I think they won't deviate too much from that.
"Their full-back line is very settled. Seamus Kennedy and Ronan Maher have been massive finds in the half-back line and then there's Michael Breen, an absolutely massive find in midfield.
"I was looking forward to the clash of Fennelly and the young buck Breen. John McGrath up front has been the shining light of the championship as regards forward play.”
After a successful defence of their Munster title, Tipperary prevailed in a tight battle with Galway three weeks ago to reach this decider.
Having assessed their campaign so far, Daly believes the Premier County have improved significantly to see them land a first All-Ireland title since 2010.
“Tipp had to peak in Munster where they dismantled Waterford in the final.
“We then saw how good Waterford were against Kilkenny.
"Tipperary didn't set the world on fire against Galway the last day but they got there. I think they are in that slightly better position going into the final even though the whole Kilkenny thing is a huge barrier for them.
"I think they are ready to shake off that barrier and to say this is our time now to make a statement and beat Kilkenny"
Watch live coverage of Kilkenny v Tipperary on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player from 1405 and follow our live blog on RTE.ie. Listen live on RTÉ Radio 1 from 1300 to include coverage of the Tipperary v Limerick minor final and watch highlights of all the weekend's GAA action on The Sunday Game from 2130 on RTÉ Two.
