Kerry defender Emma Costello has said that the panel are ready to right the wrongs of 12 months ago when they were struck down with stage fright in their All-Ireland final loss to Meath.
Costello was one of the survivors from the 2012 decider defeat to Cork, but for the majority of the panel it was their first experience of battling it out for the Brendan Martin Cup, and it showed as the Royals ruthlessly plundered 3-10 in a commanding nine-point win.
That was then and this is now though, and for Costello it'll be a much more confident Kerry team that takes to the Croke Park boards for Sunday’s All-Ireland final against Dublin.
"I think that was a goal at the start of the year, we knew we’d left some kind of questions unanswered and we hadn’t proved ourselves enough last year," said the Firies club player.
"We just made it an ultimate goal for ourselves to get ourselves back into that final to give ourselves another chance to prove ourselves.
"The team has the talent, it has the ability – we all believe in our ability – but I think last year maybe the occasion got the better of us.
"This year we just really aimed to get back in there, especially after winning Division 1.
"That was bonus territory, earlier in the year we just wanted to get through Division 1 but as it was going on we were winning more games and more games and we got into the final.
"We’re back to Croke Park and it’s not that it gets familiar to you, but it definitely gets a bit easier."
"I think definitely we learned an awful lot off last year, it was a very new experience last year, only a couple of us had played in 2012," she added.
"This year now I think we’ll be a bit more familiar with it, the build up, all that kind of stuff.
"Obviously there’s been a few new players but we have such depth in the panel, such experience but yet some new girls, so I think definitely we’re ready for it, we’re ready to go."
With the scalp of back-to-back champions Meath taken by the Kingdom in a battling quarter-final in the rain and wind, the race for the championship appeared to open up.
For Costello though, who previously played for St Brigid’s in the capital, she always had a feeling it would be Dublin if they managed to get back to the final.
Declan Quill and Darragh Long’s side had out-foxed Mayo in the first of a semi-final double-header meaning they had focused eyes on the meeting of Cork and Dublin directly afterwards in Thurles.
Kerry have only failed to win three games this year – two losses and a draw – and they have all been at the hands of the Rebels. Even with those scars relatively fresh, Costello was still expecting the Blues to reign supreme.
"We played them a couple of weeks ago in our first round of the round-robin and they were very strong, we were lucky to get through that game.
"Cork beat us twice, once in the league and once in the championship, so I knew that was going to be a very difficult game. I had a feeling that Dublin might come out on top."
Much of the discourse about the final surrounds Kerry’s long wait for the title.
They may sit joint-top on the roll of honour with their neighbours Cork, but it’s been 30 years since they triumphed with all 11 of the Rebel wins coming since Kerry's last success.
For the players though, it’s less about ending the wait and more about enjoying the experience, according to Costello.
"I think the mood is very positive, everyone is just really, really excited.
"Obviously we’ll get nervous as it goes on but we are ready. We’ve trained well and everyone is prepared and we’re confident in our abilities and confident we can go and do it."
