Shane Clayton believes that Ballyboden St Endas have been battle-hardened by the hugely competitive Dublin and Leinster championships.
The South Dublin club take on Down and Ulster champions Kilcoo in the All-Ireland SFC semi-final on Saturday, having made it to this stage for the first time since 2016.
Clayton was part of the side that went on to lift the Andy Merrigan Cup that year and he has helped Ballyboden navigate some very tight calls this time around.
Ballyboden need extra-time to edge out Na Fianna in the Dublin quarter-final before they fought back from six points down against St Judes in the semi-final to emerge victorious and for Clayton, those type of tests have helped to improve his side.
"The Dublin championship is very tough," he told RTÉ Sport.
"You never know who's going to win it each year and it’s tough to even come out of there.
"We had a few scares in the quarter-finals and the semi-finals but just in the last few minutes we always feel like we have it in us to get over the line and thankfully on those days we did and pushed through Leinster."
It was a similar situation in Leinster as the Dublin side needed a last-gasp surge to overcome Carlow’s Eire Og in dreadful conditions.
"It was a very tough day in very tough conditions, probably the worst conditions I’ve ever played in football wise, but in the last few minutes we kicked two scores at the end when it didn’t look likely.
"When they took the lead I was a bit worried myself but the last few plays we managed to work the ball and work the right score, not kicking stupid ball away."
Next up for Ballyboden and Kilcoo of Down and while the Northern side might be the underdogs, Clayton is aware of the problems they can cause for his side in Saturday’s semi-final.
"We know what Kilcoo are like, they’ve won multiple Down championships over the last number of years.
"They’ve unfortunately never kicked on through Ulster but they’ve always played the likes of Crossmaglen or Slaughtneil so it wasn’t like they were losing to any slouches.
"This year they put in a strong performance in Ulster and they’re lovely to watch on the eye, great football through the middle, they’re very athletic and they have the Brannigans and the Laffertys and the Johnsons up front that will do damage."
