It draws ever closer. For one side there is a 16-year wait to put to an end and for the other there is a chance to win a first Liam McCarthy Cup since 2005.
Ger, Gizzy and the lads were down in Cork last night for the Ulster Bank Off The Ball roadshow and there was no better time to preview the All Ireland Senior Hurling final.
On the panel there were representatives of the two finalist and one from neutral ground.
In the red corner sat former GPA Hurler of the Year John Gardiner, while the yellow corner was patrolled by two-time All Ireland winner Ollie Baker.
And hovering in between was Kilkenny's five time All Ireland winner Michael Fennelly.
Last night, Cork named their side and there was just the one change from the side that beat Dublin. Brian Murphy returned from injury to take his place in the starting XV.
"I thought when Brian Murphy got back fit, he was always going to be included.," said Gardiner. "The million dollar question was who Jimmy Barry Murphy was going to leave out. I know Tom Kenny will be disappointed but he'll get on with it."
And Gardiner feels Tom Kenny's experience from the bench will be vital due to the relative youth of JBM's options.
"All the guys that come on are very young. They're obviously doing well this year. If he's needed, with Tom Kenny on the bench, he won't be found wanting."
Michael Fennelly faced this Cork side in the quarter-finals and came out the wrong side of a 0-19 to 0-14 contest. So what are the strengths of this Rebel contingent?
"I was up at the Dublin v Cork game and I was very impressed from the first minute. They got the first few scores, while it took Dublin 10 minutes to settle in. From the outset, Cork went at them and there were criss-cross balls and points every couple of minutes. The beauty of Cork that day was that everybody contributed to the scoreline. This new Cork side don't have a lot of experience but the system they have is working very well."
There is a newness to this young Clare team but some of the Davy Fitzgerald's team have won an U21 All Ireland.
"My own personal view is that if you're good enough, you're old enough," said Baker. "They have U21 title behind them from '09 and last year so they're able to use that and bring it forward to the seniors.
And from the Munster semi-final they'll have learnt that not everything goes your way during a game. There are times when ypu're going to have to change tact in the middle of a match. It appeared on that day that there was no Plan B and they were going to overpower Cork with their style of hurling. But when Cork came out and had a different attitude, Clare looked a bit lost. Now there's a mixture of short game and long game. And their shots-to-score ration has really improved."
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