JOHN Cleary has achieved something no current Cork footballer can claim – winning a senior championship game in Killarney.

‘When I was playing, I think we won there in ’87, ’89 and ’93,’ he says, reeling off the years with the accuracy of a Steven Sherlock free.

‘During that time, we were going toe-to-toe with Kerry. I lost a couple there as well, but it was great to be part of a team that got over the line three times.

‘It’s a fabulous venue and a great place to play. I’m looking forward to it now just as much as I did when I was playing.’

The Cork boss knows where this line of questioning is heading, so he’s ready for it.

Given that Cork’s last championship win in Killarney was back in 1995, is the weight of history a factor?

‘No, I don’t think that matters one bit,’ he says.

‘All we’re focusing on is the game itself – 15 against 15. Everything else is a sideshow, whether it’s history or anything else. All we’re concentrating on is putting in a performance against an excellent Kerry team. For us, nothing else matters at this stage.’

Cork boss John Cleary.

He knows the stars need to align for Cork on Sunday to topple the All-Ireland champions in their own backyard, but Cleary believes. Kerry are a ‘fabulous team’, he insists, but he also knows what his Rebels are capable of.

‘We know that on our day we’re a match for anyone, but we have to get everything right,’ he says.

‘Fellas need to click, we might need a bit of luck here and there, and hopefully we can put ourselves in a position where we’re right there coming down the home stretch.’

After a consistent Division 2 campaign that ended in promotion – at last – to Division 1 after a ten-year absence, Cleary’s side haven’t quite set the world on fire in the Munster series. They’ve cleared tricky hurdles in beating both Limerick (4-16 to 1-16) and Tipperary (4-18 to 1-12), but there have been sticky patches in both.

‘You can’t be at your peak every day, so peaking on the right day is the main hope,’ Cleary explains.

‘Over the last couple of games, we were excellent at times and at other times we weren’t. I think that’s been a pattern across the country over the last few weeks. Barring Westmeath, I’m not sure any team has put together a complete performance.

‘Teams are coming off a long league of seven or eight games in ten weeks. It’s a case of trying to start a new competition again, coming thick and fast after the last one.

‘The league was big for us and we put an awful lot into it, so if there was a small drop-off at times, it was understandable.

‘Now we have to get back to the level required to take on the All-Ireland champions on their home pitch.’

Cleary also knows what conquering Munster would mean to Cork football. Without a provincial senior title since 2012, it’s the county’s second-longest drought in the competition – the previous being 1928 to 1943.

‘It would be huge. If you haven’t done something for 14 years, whenever you do finally achieve it, it’s significant,’ he says.

‘I don’t think any of these players have a Munster medal yet. The achievement would be getting over the line against a fabulous Kerry team with some of the best players ever to play the game. The bonus would be having that Munster championship.

‘But as I said, we’re just looking forward to the game. It’s 70 minutes where we give it our best shot and see where that takes us. If it’s a victory, that’s fantastic.

‘We’re looking at match-ups and where we can eke out a one-percent advantage. Hopefully our lads hit the ground running and are in form in Killarney.’

It’s a venue he knows well – as a supporter, a player and now a manager. With the stadium close to the town centre, there will be a vibrancy to the streets and pubs leading to Fitzgerald Stadium. Cleary knows Cork fans love the Killarney trip, and he is keen to give them something to shout about.

‘If we can go down there and go toe-to-toe with Kerry, we’ll really see what we’re made of,’ he says, believing his players can join him as Cork footballers who have won a championship derby in Killarney.