Roscommon referee Paddy Neilan throws the ball in and the 2025 All-Ireland Senior Club Football final is underway.

Strap yourself in, this could be epic!

BBC Sport NI soaks up the atmosphere as Tyrone side Errigal Ciaran prepare to face Cuala in the All-Ireland Senior Club Championship final at Croke Park.

Thomas Niblock catches up with lollipop man Brendan McClenaghan, St Brigid's Primary School principal Ryan Lynch and the daughter and godson of Errigal Ciaran manager Enda McGinley, Emma and Peter.

The two teams begin their pre-match parade around Croke Park led by the Artane band with throw-in.

Strangely Cuala have 16 men in their parade but only 15 can play we can't have another more sixteen men drama with Dublin clubs on All-Ireland final day!!

One change for Cuala and as expected Cillian Dunne will replace captain James Power at right half-forward.

Tyrone legend Peter Canavan says All-Ireland Club Championship success for Errigan Ciaran would "be as good as any title I've won personally".

Canavan's sons, Ruairi and Darragh, are key players for the team and he is vice chairperson at the club.

Errigal Ciaran are aiming to win their first All-Ireland club title and face Dublin outfit Cuala in the final at Croke Park on Sunday.

Despite having an honours list that includes the 2003 and 2005 All-Ireland titles with Tyrone, six All-Stars and two Ulster titles with Errigal Ciaran as a player, Canavan says watching his club taste success against Cuala would be right up there.

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The Errigal Ciaran ties run deep at St Brigid's Primary School in Altnamuskin, County Tyrone.

The local GAA club are aiming for their first All-Ireland football title on Sunday, when the senior men's side face Dublin outfit Cuala in Croke Park - and the excitement at the school is palpable.

After all, it's not that long since the principal was on the pitch rather than the playground.

And many of the pupils are already involved with the club - among them the daughter of senior team manager Enda McGinley.

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Errigal Ciaran defender Aidan McCrory believes his side are "living off hope" ahead of their All-Ireland Club Championship final against Cuala.

The Tyrone side are aiming to win their first All-Ireland club title when they face the Dublin outfit in Sunday's decider at Croke Park.

After a dramatic extra-time win over Dr Crokes in the last four, McCrory is hopeful his side can once again rise to the occasion in their quest to make history.

"You hope you can go out and put in a performance you are happy with and proud of," McCrory told BBC Sport.

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The battle for the Andy Merrigan Cup may come down to the success of two sets of brothers.

On the Errigal side you have the Canavan's, Ruairi and Darragh the sons of arguably Tyrone's most famous son in Peter. The two lads are a chip off the old block and accounted for 1-13 of their side's 2-18 in the semi-final win over Dr Crokes last weekend.

Throughout the championship Darragh and Ruairi have a combined tally of 1-69 that's 71 points and 48.3% of Errigal's total return.

On the Cuala side you have the O'Callaghans and one of the most revered forwards in the country in the form of Dublin star Con and his brother Niall.

The O'Callaghans hit 0-8 of the Dublin champions' 0-14 in their semi-final win over Coolera-Strandhill eight days ago. The pair have also combined for 7-70 that's a whopping 91 points and 48.4% of their clubs championship return.

As they say a grain of rice can tip the scale and with the margins razor tight on All-Ireland final day, these four may have a huge say on the outcome.

Errigal Ciaran boss Enda McGinley once again names an unchanged team for what feels like the entirety of the championship.

It means that Ciaran Quinn who limped off in extra-time of last week's semi-final win is retained while the hero of the semi-final and Ulster final Peter Og McCartan starts at wing-back.

The midfield battle is likely to have a huge say on the winner with Ben McDonnell and Joe Oguz coming up against Peadar O'Cofaigh Byrne and Peter Duffy.

No surprise in either forward line as both Canavan and O'Callaghan brothers start on the inside line.

One to watch out for is that Cuala usually make one alteration before throw-in with captain James Power dropping out to provide a third-quarter boost and typically it's Cillian Dunne who comes in.

If that proves to be the case once again remains to be seen and if there are any late changes we'll bring them to you.

Cuala: Ryan Scollard, Danny Conroy, Michael Fitzsimons, Eoghan O'Callaghan, Eoin Kennedy, Charlie McMorrow, David O'Dowd, Peader O'Cofaigh Byrne, Peter Duffy, James Power, Conor O'Brien, Cal Doran, Luke Keating, Niall O'Callaghan, Con O'Callaghan.

Subs: Darragh O'Dowd, Luke Tracey, John Fitzsimons, Michael Conroy, Cathal O'Giollain, Conor Groarke, Shane Mangan, Cillian Dunne, Jamie Conroy, Liam Fitzgerald, Aodhan English, Tom Magee, Jamie Keenan, Dan O'Sulivan, Daragh McAdam.

Errigal Ciaran: Darragh McAnenly, Ciaran Quinn, Aidan McCrory, Cormac Quinn, Peter Og McCartan, Niall Kelly, Tiarnan Colhoun, Ben McDonnell, Joe Oguz, Peter Harte, Thomas Canavan, Ciaran McGinley, Odhran Robinson, Darragh Canavan, Ruairi Canavan.

Subs: Stephen McMenamin, Aaron McAnenly, Bryan Horisk, Dara McGinley, Dermot Morrow, Eoin Kelly, Mark Kavanagh, Michael Quinn, Padraig McGirr, Pauric Traynor, Peter O'Hanlon, Ronan McRory, Ryan Ward, Ronan O'Sullivan, Tomas Mullin.

Image source, BBC Sport

Errigal Ciaran's All-Ireland Club Football Final meeting with Cuala at Croke Park on Sunday (15:40 GMT) has been portrayed as a shootout between the Canavan brothers and Con O'Callaghan but there are elements within that which require a little elaboration.

These include the presence of Cuala's supreme man marker Mick Fitzsimons who in all likelihood will be delegated the task of attempting to subdue Darragh Canavan.

Fitzsimons shares the all-time record of All-Ireland inter-county triumphs along with fellow Dublin greats James McCarthy and Stephen Cluxton having accumulated nine Celtic Crosses.

His curbing of Kerry's star forward David Clifford in the 2023 All-Ireland Final was a defensive masterclass and his battle with which ever Canavan could be the key determinant in Sunday's clash at Croke Park.

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As Errigal Ciaran's present, past and future celebrated on the St Conleth's Park pitch after last Saturday's dramatic extra-time victory over Dr Crokes, the club couldn't have exhibited unity in a more tangible fashion.

While the post-match interviews were taking place, other players somehow summoned up the energy for the autographs and the mobile phone snaps with young, middle aged and the more senior as proud parents such as Peter Canavan himself had their hands almost shaken off.

In those particular moments, one could have been forgiven for thinking that it was always thus among the Errigal Ciaran faithful. Except that it wasn't.

The story has been well documented but as the club prepares to de-camp to Croke Park this weekend, it's probably worth recalling the bitter 1980s split in Ballygawley GAA whose victims at one stage included the burgeoning career of the young Canavan and whose initial two protagonists included none other than Mickey Harte.

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A Dublin double today remains in prospect after Na Fianna beat Slaughtneil's conquerors Sarsfields 2-23 to 0-20 in the All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Final to clinch their first title.

Tom Brennan scored both the Na Fianna goals with the Dubliners really in total control as the led 0-9 to 0-1 after the opening quarter and 1-16 to 0-7 at half-time.

Image source, BBC Sport

Welcome to level seven here in Croke Park more affectionately known to many as the Hogan Stand.

Today, with the exception of a few school and college competitions marks the end of the 2024 season, (I know we are in 2025!) and it's maybe the most special of the lot as the All-Ireland Senior Club Football Final takes place.

They say there's no such thing as a certainty in sport and that is probably correct but there is one certainty in GAA headquarters this afternoon and that's the fact there will be a new name on the Andy Merrigan Cup.

Either Errigal Ciaran bidding to become the first ever Tyrone club to lift the title and bizarrely are the first Red Hand County side to even appear in the decider.

Or their opponents Cuala, appearing in their first football final and bidding to join St Finbarr's of Cork in becoming only the second club to lift the top prizes in both club hurling and football, hoisting the cup on the steps below me just before 6pm.

They're doing it for their counties, their provinces, their parish and for their families. Strap yourself in as this is sure to be another titanic tussle right to the death.

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