Incentive for teams to make it lucky 13th

Not for the first time, the battle for the All-Ireland Camogie title in Croke Park tomorrow will be an historic occasion. Besides it being the last final of the millennium, and that it's 15-a-side for the first time, both Kilkenny and Tipperary have extra incentive to make this year the one that matters.

Tipperary, appearing in their 13th final, are looking for their first title. Their last visit to Croke Park was back in the GAA centenary year of 1984. Kilkenny aim to achieve their 13th title but there are some personal matters also which adds to their sense of occasion.

For a start, Kilkenny's Ann Downey is a substitute, although an appearance tomorrow is more a formality than a possibility. If they win, she will claim her 13th All-Ireland senior medal, a feat which would equal the record of Dublin's Una O'Connor set between 1953 and 1967. But there are other long-serving members also, including the current captain Gillian Dillon-Maher who has been there since the start of the 1990s after coming straight into the senior panel following her two victorious All-Ireland's with the minor side.

With senior medals from the Kilkenny side that won their last two titles in 1991 and 1994, Dillon-Maher, however, believes the five year gap has been too long. "We are delighted to get this far, but we're all hoping to finish it off as well," she said. "It was such a big boost in the camp to beat Cork and get here in the first place, because nobody really gave us a chance. We're all excited about winning it now but we know Tipperary will have something to say about that."

Dillon-Maher agrees with the sense of history surrounding the game, significantly with it being the first 15-a-side line-up for an All-Ireland final. "The new format has definitely improved the game, no doubt about that.

"It encourages more players to come on board and probably brings it closer to the game of hurling in that before it was so different in how it was played. It can only get better in the years to come. As it is, the live television coverage is a step in the right direction but I still feel there is a way to go," she said.

Tipperary, meanwhile, will prove more than a worthy match, not least of all in their hunger to claim their first senior title. "We've played them in three practice matches already this year and we know how strong they are. They are a very physical side, especially in the forwards, but the whole team will have to be watched very closely," she said.

Her role as captain is something Dillon-Maher gratefully received following her club Freshford's victory in the county championship. Tomorrow, she is joined by four clubmates - an advantage she hopes will enhance Kilkenny's chances. "The five of us obviously know each other very well at this stage, although I usually play at centre-forward for the club. I'll start at centre-back tomorrow and that's a bit of a change for me but the whole team have been together since last March so we do have a fair understanding of each other."

It has been quite a few years since a camogie-hurling double was achieved in Kilkenny, but that's an incentive Dillon-Maher senses will only lift them even more. "It's a bit wild in Kilkenny at the moment, and certainly a real buzz about the hurling and the camogie. I can't imagine what it will be like if we get the double."

And adding to the sense of history will be the introduction to the crowd for the first time of a women's Jubilee Team before the senior final, featuring the victorious Kilkenny team of 1974 which, incredibly, also included Ann Downey - still on senior panel 25 years later. Another medal tomorrow would surpass by one her twin sister Angela's total.

The junior final preceding the senior game sees Derry, the National Junior League winners, take on Cork, who last won the title in 1996. It's been 21 years since Derry's last championship victory when, coincidentally, they beat Cork and before that the two sides met in the 1969 final when Derry again came out on top. For Cork, it's the chance to make it third time lucky.