By Shaun Casey

HOW much can really change inside 12 months? When Kilcoo and Burren locked horns in last year’s county final, nine points separated the teams when the referee sounded the full-time whistle.

That 2023 decider was built up as the one where Burren finally laid down a marker and reclaimed their position as top dogs in the Mourne County. It didn’t happen and in truth, Burren were a long way off.

The whole referee saga (which we don’t need to revisit) only added to the pre-match hype but the game failed to live up to the billing. Outside of the opening 10 minutes, it was all Kilcoo, and they eased to a sixth successive title.

And the Magpies have shown absolutely no signs of slowing down this year either. Karl Lacey’s side ruthlessly dismissed Glenn in the semi-final and look to continue their trend as the dominant force in Down club football.

Burren, under the new management this season of Eoin McCartan and Stevie O’Hare, needed a controversial goal to see off Carryduff in their last four battle, but maybe that wee bit of luck will do them no harm.

They have a squad stacked with serious quality and a huge range of county experience. Not only players on Conor Lavery’s Down panel, but Armagh’s All-Ireland winning defender and All-Star nominee Paddy Burns is a key cog at the back.

Odhrán Murdock is continuing to grow as one of the best midfielders in the province while they have a perfect blend of youth and experience with Paddy McCarthy, Ryan and Danny Magill learning off the likes of Gerard McGovern, Donal O’Hare, now a goalkeeper, and Liam Kerr.

Kilcoo aren’t short on that type of talent either of course, although Ryan Johnston remains a doubt as he missed the semi-final with an ankle injury. But his siblings Jerome and Shealan, are still two of the stars.

The half-back line of Micéal Rooney, Darryl Branagan and Eugene Branagan is as good as you’ll see at this level, Ceilum Doherty was excellent in the red and black this year, while Ryan McEvoy could find himself lining up against Murdock at centrefield.

How much has changed in the last 12 months? We’ll get our answer on Sunday, but the form guide would suggest that Burren will need to play at their absolute maximum to wrestle the Frank O’Hare Cup from Kilcoo’s grip for the first time since 2018.