Mayo v Waterford, Croke Park, 3.0

Tomorrow's final is representative of both the emerging new order and the standard-bearers for the sport in less-heralded days.

Mayo's arrival adds new colour to a spectacle which was beginning to suffer from predictability. That their emergence as a force has been based upon youth also points to the game's changing style.

Sunday's confrontation makes for a classic contrast in style; Waterford the seasoned veterans, laden with All-Irelands and All-Star awards, against a hungry bunch of youngsters playing in their first ever All-Ireland final.

The most relevant reference source for this match is the league semi-final meeting between the two. Waterford, who will again be favourites, did progress on that occasion but only after a struggle through extra time.

Waterford are solid through the lines, have a number of flair players and an organisation that comes with having soldiered together over many seasons. Mayo are younger and more adventurous; their game is based on speed, tireless running and relentless attacking. Consistency, however, is one aspect of their game which they are still developing, as the semi-final win over Meath illustrated. Untipped in that game, Mayo showed why in the first half, hitting just three points in a performance littered with wides. They regrouped and struck gold over the next half hour, blitzing a beleaguered Meath defence with 3-10 to win comfortably.

It was during that match that 16-year-old Sabrina Bailey came of age, nailing 1-4 of the team's total and enhancing an already sharp attacking unit fronted by Cora Staunton and Christina Heffernan. If Mayo's path through the semi-final was laced with excitement, then Waterford's dismissal of Monaghan was steady and pre-meditated.

They started impressively, fashioned a lead and never looked back thereafter. Waterford's chief attribute has been their strength down the centre, from Anna Lisa Crotty to Siobhan O'Ryan through to Claire Ryan. The dismissal and subsequent suspension of Rebecca Hallahan in the course of that 9 victory cannot be understated; Hallahan is a vital influence on the team. Her absence will be something that will rankle with Waterford should they lose.

But the likelihood is that they will not. Mayo's presence points to a bright new century for the sport but that era is not quite yet upon us.

Mayo: D Horan; N O'Shea, H Lohan, I Mullarkey; M Heffernan, Y Byrne, N Lally; C Egan, C Heffernan; M Staunton, C Staunton, S Costello; D O'Hora, S Bailey, M O'Malley.

Waterford: S Hickey; T White, A Crotty, N Walsh; M Troy, S O'Ryan, J Torpey; M O'Ryan, O Condon; AN Other, Mary O'Donnell, Niamh Burns; A Wall, C Ryan, G O'Ryan.