From the early rounds in October, all signs were pointing towards an Energia All-Ireland League final rematch between Clontarf and Terenure.
As expected, the pair will lock horns once again in this Sunday's decider at the Aviva Stadium, but their paths to the final have had to experience a few bumps along the way.
Defending champions Clontarf are back in the showpiece after a nail-biting win against Young Munster in the semi-final, holding on for a 13-12 victory at a rain-soaked Castle Avenue.
The Limerick side saw a long range Conor Hayes penalty fall short of the posts in the final minute of normal time, while Tarf had to endure what felt like an eternal six further minutes before they eventually found the refuge of the final whistle.
"It probably wasn’t a vintage performance," admits Clontarf captain Matt D’Arcy.
While their place in the final came down to last few seconds, it only served to reinforce the belief that when the game becomes chaotic, they have the steady hand.
Winning has become a habit, and they’re happy to do it by any means.
"It definitely stands to us, the fact that we've done it once or twice in tight games, it's that instinct that comes back to the team, that feeling and habit. We hope it can help.
"We hope it's not that close. I get a lot of joking and stick from the supporters and alickadoos, that we're giving people heart attacks. We'll try avoid it on Sunday if we can, it would be nice to get a couple of scores ahead. If it comes down to it, we back ourselves to make the right decisions."
That composure in times of chaos was evident in last year’s final at the Aviva. The north Dublin club ground out a 29-23 win against Sunday’s opponents Terenure, defending that six-point winning margin for the final 20 minutes.
Terenure were the surprise package of last season, with Sean Skehan’s side reaching the Division 1A final for the first time ever.
The sides were evenly matched throughout this campaign, with Terenure winning eight in a row to start the season, and Tarf closing out their regular season with seven wins on the spin.
Their regular season meetings illustrate just how little there is between the sides; Nure winning 29-24 away to Tarf in November, before the champions returned the favour at Lakelands in January, defeating them by the exact same scoreline.
Simply getting to the final in 2022 was a historic achievement for the south Dublin club, but not anymore.
"I think with the group we had, it was so good, we didn’t want it to be just a one-off, being in that final," Terenure captain Harrison Brewer says.
"We knew we were probably good enough to go on and win it, so it was a matter of getting back there as quick as possible, and getting another go at it.
"I think after the semi-final this year you could really get a sense that it’s 'all business’. We deserve to be there and we want to come home with everything, rather than just have a good day out for the club.
"That was kind of the key phrase that annoyed me last year afterwards: ‘oh, it was so great for the club’. But I think for us this year it’s about coming home with the pot, to be honest."
Brewer was appointed captain of the club this season having filled in as skipper in the 2022 decider, when then-captain Stephen O’Neill missed out due to injury.
And it looked like that same injury curse would befall him when he suffered a nasty elbow injury in the penultimate round of the regular season against Cork Constitution.
After fears he could be sidelined beyond a potential final, the 28-year-old recovered in time to feature of the bench in their rematch with Con in the semi-final.
"There was a lot of rehab. The week afterwards I was going to see a specialist, and also MRIs and actually see if I could get through it.
"Because it was a full rupture, I couldn’t really do much more damage. So that was probably a good thing, in the sense I could get back out playing, but one more game and we’ll be touching base with all those guys again," added Brewer, whose father Mike is a former Leinster coach and New Zealand international.
While both Clontarf and Terenure have recruited exceptional talent from outside of Dublin, the captains are local boys rooted in the community.
Brewer grew up in Terenure, and having spent time playing professionally in New Zealand and Japan, opened a coffee dock - Up@Brews - at the club during the Covid-19, a project that was initially meant to be for the short-term but has now expanded to a second location in Blackrock.
"I'm trying to stay away the last couple of days, people come down and ask questions about the final. It's non-stop!
"A lot of people even go down there to meet, little reunions going there during the year, and they have the men's sheds there as well. It's a great setup."
Equally, D’Arcy’s life has revolved around Clontarf.
The former Munster centre first landed down in Castle Avenue alongside his twin brother Aidan at the age of five, and is still wearing red and blue hoops 27 years later.
"It’s just ingrained in us. I grew up there playing with all my friends since I was five.
"The older members of the club talking how much it means to them, and thanking us with emotion in their eyes after a win, which is what it’s all about and sharing a pint with them. They’re not shy about buying you a beer or congratulating you or giving you a bit of stick if you have a close win.
"Yeah, community is massive, and that’s what it’s all about.
"I have early memories of going down to AIL games, myself and my friends, playing what started out as tip-rugby and swiftly turned into full-contact in the dead ball lines while the match was going on, and playing on into the long hours after big games. It goes back a long way.
"[It’s been] a massive part of my life. It's a weird one, rugby has been so important in my life for other reasons, like who I am as a person, how I treat people, and what it means to be a part of something.
"The respect the game has given me is massive, and I owe so much to it. This is my 10th season in the AIL, and as Harrison would have told you, it takes over your life.
"There are the days you'll look back on, and hopefully with fond memories of lifting a cup," he added.
Sunday’s final will be D’Arcy’s sixth, with two wins and three defeats in his previous experiences in the Aviva decider, while he’s hoping to join his brother Aidan – who retired last year – in winning a third All-Ireland title.
After losing in their first AIL final last year, Brewer and his Terenure teammates arrived back in Lakelands to a hero’s welcome with more than 1,000 people packing the club car park, and purple flares lighting up the laneway towards the club.
And the thought of experiencing that again is driving Brewer and his teammates on.
"That was a special moment, but there was one thing missing, which was the AIL pot.
"It's so important for us to come home with that this year. It would mean the world."
