It's nice to have a medal from 1992 but I'd like to get one playing. But that was my first and there was a great buzz from being involved. I remember coming back in 1991 (All-Ireland defeat by Tipperary) on the doubledecker bus and it was like a morgue although people from Kilkenny were great because we hadn't been in it since '83.

In '91 we weren't confident enough to win it. In '92 we made up for it and in '93 they did it again. I was captain of the juniors in '93. Maybe that had some bearing on the fact that I wasn't picked for the seniors. To this day I was never told why I was dropped.

You're never going to get everyone hurling well on the same day. I suppose we haven't gone as well as we would have liked but we'll be hoping to put that right on Sunday. If we don't, we won't be winning.

It started off so badly. No one was giving us a chance after the league games. Sure we weren't even supposed to beat Dublin and next thing we beat them handy and were in contention for the All-Ireland campaign - from one extreme to another.

We've fallen over every hurdle this season, I suppose - if we fall over the next, I'll be happy - and we haven't beaten anyone well since Dublin so there's no reason to get carried away.

I thought against Laois in the last quarter of an hour we really hurled well, coming from two or three points down to beat them. I think our backs were really against the wall that day and we had to pull out the stops.

That and Waterford were the toughest games but in the Leinster final Offaly were going only 50 per cent of what they're capable of. They've improved but we've improved as well.

I suppose most people expected Clare to be in the final but we've got to get on with it. It doesn't matter. If they win the All-Ireland we can nearly throw back the Leinster cup to them as well because it won't be much good to us.

The fact that we had six weeks' break before the semi-final wasn't a great help. It's only four now which is ideal preparation. You need a week to recover, two weeks to train hard and a week to slow down. We've had no injuries going into it, unlike the Waterford match when we'd more up in the stand than we did on the pitch.

I couldn't tell you why my form has improved so much in recent years - I'm on drugs! More dedication, a few less nights out.

Other than that a bit more self-belief and confidence and being given a chance. Not just being put in now and again and maybe play badly, get taken off, get a go the next day, be left on, the same thing happen the next day after that and be taken off. When you're left there for a while you get used to the same position and you relax more.

You always have to keep going. There's a lot of good hurlers in Kilkenny and you've no divine right to be there. You've to earn your call. I kept working away at it and lucky enough we won the championship with Gowran here and myself and a few of the other boys here were to the fore.

I can't really pinpoint it other than that there was a bit more dedication and commitment.

(Interview: Sean Moran)

The facts. . .

Club: Young Irelands.

Age: 27.

Job: Farmer.

Height: 5 ft 7 ins.

Weight: 11 st 5 lb.

Honours: All-Ireland SHC - 1992; All-Ireland Under-21HC - 1990; All-Ireland MHC - 1988; Leinster SHC - 1992, '98; Leinster JHC - 1993; National Hurling League - 1995.