Last December, there was a ripple on the club hurling scene, on what was a stacked weekend of games across the country.
Naas against Glenmore in the Leinster Intermediate Hurling Championship semi-final did not jump off the fixture list that Saturday, but nonetheless threw up a notable result.
In a grade dominated by the Kilkenny champions, the Cats' representatives were beaten in the province for the first time in 10 years, with Naas deservedly downing Eoin Murphy and Co, 1-16 to 1-10.
They didn't stop at that. A provincial title followed before wins over Toreen of Mayo and Kilmoyley of Kerry saw them claim the All-Ireland title.
Becoming the first county 'senior' champions to win the All-Ireland Intermediate title since Carlow's Mount Leinster Rangers in 2012 affords Naas the right to compete in the Leinster Senior Championship after they retained their Kildare SHC title this year.
Mixing it with the big guns is exactly where this side wants to be.
"Definitely. There's no doubt about it. It's great to be in there," explains Naas and Kildare hurling captain Brian Byrne ahead of their clash with Offaly champions Shinrone on Saturday.
"It's very much unknown territory for us. We've never been there before. Last year's club win was at intermediate level, so this is another big step up. It's a complete unknown for us.
"For want of a better word, it's like bonus stuff. We'll try get our stuff in order and see where it goes.
"We'll just be looking at our first game and see where we get to."
The rise of the Naas hurlers is no mere Cinderella story. It is the fruits of significant focus on the small ball in the town, and also the county.
As seen in Kildare's ascension to the Joe McDonagh Cup ranks, along with notable underage results such as a shock win over Wexford in the 2021 under-20 Leinster Championship, hurling is on the rise in the county.
Closer to home for Naas, they have built upon opportunities, such as their juvenile teams competing in Kilkenny leagues.
"To be fair, Kilkenny are very good. They associated us, looked after us, they accepted us down there, said 'come on down, we'll play league games not a bother'," Byrne says.
"A lot of work is done at underage. We're obviously a town with quite a big population there, so there is always young kids coming along hurling away. And the underage set-up is good there, a lot of people putting in good work, like John Holmes.
"I'd say every juvenile that picks up a hurl in Naas goes through John Holmes' coaching. And he's just one of many people down there. A lot of people put a lot of work into the underage set-up.
"When you start winning games or you start winning Kildare Championships, it's nice to see the smile on their face when it gets back to the club and all that. They realise the work they put in years ago is bearing fruit."
Throughout their winter odyssey 12 months ago, they could scarcely believe how far it would go.
"Did I think it (All-Ireland Intermediate success) was ever possible? If we're all being realistic, I think maybe no," Byrne recalls.
"Our big aim is getting over Kildare. We struggled for many years in Kildare to get over the line. Similar to the football, there was a big enough drought there in terms of hurling. A lot of people were saying we should be winning them, and we weren't getting over the line.
"Every year, our main focus is Kildare. It's competitive. Maynooth, their underage are starting to come through to senior now as well. Celbridge are always tough. It's always competitive. We try to get over the line there.
"When we'd done that, I know it's cliched but we were just chasing each game that came along. Thankfully for the club, it was football and hurling [title wins]. It was a good buzz around the place. And the lads enjoyed it, it was a rollercoaster of emotions.
"But it was a brilliant journey to be on. You don't sit down at the start of the year and say 'right, we'll get here'. You sit down at the start of the year and say 'we need to get over the Kildare Championship'.
"Once we got over Kildare, we just took it game by game. The whole thing snowballed and a couple of months later we were up in Croke Park which thankfully ended up being a great day."
The Glenmore victory was a significant step in that journey.
"That kind of made us become a little bit more noticed," he continues. "Glenmore were a fantastic side, and they deserved to be where they were, getting through the Kilkenny Championship. That's a competitive Kilkenny Intermediate Championship, the way they have it set up there.
"They're a good side. But we brought it back to ourselves, and said 'if we can give this a good go, or if we can get these things right, then we'll be there or thereabouts'. And we got over the line. That probably opened other people's eyes to us.
"We kept motoring on, we kept our head down. Oylegate came up in the final. And they're another formidable team, a lot of inter-county players with Wexford there. We just tried to get ourselves right, see how it went, and thankfully it was all good."
This weekend, they welcome Shinrone to St Conleth's Park in Newbridge. The Naas players will relish their shot at upsetting the odds once more.
With every passing win, they are putting Kildare hurling on the map. And in the process, proving that hurling's top table is not necessarily a closed shop.
