IN 2024, Kilbrittain had only six games across both football and hurling. They drew three of them and lost the other three – a flat, forgettable campaign that ended early. This year, the entire narrative has flipped.

They haven’t lost a game in normal time in hurling or football and are on a seven-game winning streak in the small ball. A county premier junior hurling championship and a Munster junior hurling title are their just rewards.

For forward Bertie Butler, who scored 1-3 in their provincial final win over Kilrossanty, this has been one of those dream years.

‘There is such a buzz and the buzz grows with every win. We’re grateful for the good vibes and everything that is going on with us at the moment,’ he told The Star Sport Podcast.

‘If you look back at last year, we didn’t win a single game in championship. We drew two hurling games and lost one. We drew one football game and lost two. We were finished on September 15th. If you look at the contrast from last year to this year, we’re not taking it for granted. I’m not saying it’s going to go on forever but we are really appreciating every win.’

Manager Joe Ryan’s pre-match team talk was simple before their Munster win. Although it is December, Kilbrittain want to prolong this remarkable journey.

The Kilbrittain team celebrates after defeating Kilrossanty in the AIB Munster Club JBHC final in Mallow on Saturday. (Photo: Paddy Feen)

‘His message was “let’s just get back training next week.” You’d sometimes hear from some that aren’t involved in GAA being like “how do you keep going back training whenever?” When you get days like that, it’s so easy to go back training. All you want to do is go back and see the lads again,’ Butler explained.

This was Ryan’s first year in the hot seat after a season in John Considine’s backroom team in 2024. It’s fair to say this has been the dream season.

Butler and his teammates appreciate their new boss and everything he has brought.

‘He’s just such a calming influence. You’d rarely see Joe get too excited or roaring. For a team that’s as young as ours, maybe we can get a bit carried away sometimes and it’s exactly what we need.

‘It hasn’t just been Joe. This has been in the works for the last five years. When Jamie (Wall) came in in 2019, we’ve been building on that throughout the last five years. We had John Considine last year as well. This hasn’t been a year in isolation,’ the forward admitted.

It was Mark Hickey (1-9) and Butler who got the majority of the plaudits scoring-wise, but the Black and Amber are far more than just the headline-getters.

After the final whistle Ollie O'Brien celebrate with team captain Philip Wall. (Photo: Paddy Feen)

‘It could be anyone the next day out in the All-Ireland semi-final. Just as it was in the county final or in different games in the group stage. In the county final, our half-forward line got 0-16 between the three of them out of 0-22 which is just unbelievable. You look at the game against Knockaderry, you had Luke Griffin and Conor Hogan doing the damage.

‘The two midfielders Josh O’Donovan and Sean Sexton will always chip in. Look at Aaron Holland’s point on Saturday, it was crazy. We have scoring threats all over the field and if you try to take one or two fellas out of the game, we always have someone else who can pop up on any given day. I was just very lucky it was me (against Kilrossanty),’ Butler said.

The whole panel has contributed at some stage on this run, even those not in the starting team. That collective buy-in is the essence of a strong group – no wonder they’re reaping success.

‘I think lads can go into games now with a bit more ease knowing that “even if things don’t go well for me today, we have loads of other options.” Not just our starting 15 but our subs can come on and do serious damage as well. Look at Conor Ustianowski. We’re not in this position without his contribution in the county semi-final against Ballygarvan,’ Butler acknowledged.

‘We have Nick O’Donovan, the two Harringtons (Tom and Dec), Charlie Kenny, Eoghan Byrne who came on in the semi-final against Knockaderry. We have eight or nine subs that can come on and make a difference. That does help the fellas that are playing. That’s the best thing with this team. There’s such a trust there with each other that there will always be someone there to pick up the slack for us.’

It is a Christmas period to look forward to for the community. An All-Ireland semi-final against either Clane of Kildare or Davidstown Courtnacuddy of Wexford awaits on the weekend of December 20/21.

‘It’s going to be a very different experience for us. We’re just so excited. Obviously, we don’t know too much about Clane or Davidstown, it’s hard when you go down the grades to know much about these teams. We’ll be focusing on ourselves and what we can do to get ourselves right and keep ourselves in the best condition,’ Butler commented.

‘We’re so grateful to have a county final and Munster final victory but we’re one game away from Croke Park. We really want to keep it going. When looking back, it’s easy to say that this is the best year I’ve ever had and everyone has ever had. We’re all trying to soak it in.’