Record-chasing Kilmacud Crokes still hurting despite All-Ireland success

Saturday could bring history to Kilmacud Crokes.

While the Stillorgan giants have been regular winners in the Dublin championship since the early 1990s, they will have a chance to join St Vincent's on seven Leinster titles with a victory over Naas at Croke Park.

Considering the historic dominance of the Marino men in the capital, it would be a huge achievement for Crokes, who still have a good bit of catching up to do when it comes to county titles.

All things going well, Shane Cunningham - the senior captain - would be raising the Andy Merrigan Cup on the steps of the Hogan Stand come January. A fourth All-Ireland title would make Crokes the most successful Dublin club ever.

But there's a lot of football to be played before then, and Naas - as well as potentially the Connacht, Munster and Ulster champions - will be aiming to stop the Crokes juggernaut in its tracks.

With Mick Dillon and Johnny Magee having captained Crokes to All-Ireland glory in 1995 and 2009 respectively, Cunningham also has the chance to create a unique piece of history as the only skipper of a side from the club to win more than one All-Ireland.

But all of that, according to the man who is a Garda by profession, is a million miles away from his thoughts as they prepare to return to Croke Park to face the Kildare champions.

"Personally, I wouldn't look at it like that," he says of trying to do back-to-back All-Irelands.

"It's definitely not that stuff. As long as I'm playing for Kilmacud I'll always be motivated to give everything. I don't know if that's just who I am, or that I love playing for the club. It was always a dream of mine to just play with the club at senior level and now that I'm a part of it, even if we are not winning things, I will always