ALL-IRELAND SHC FINAL COUNTDOWN: Gavin Cummiskeytalks to Kilkenny's James 'Cha' Fitzpatrick as he prepares to lead his troops into battle

JAMES "CHA" FITZPATRICK is never asked about Kilkenny's quest for the three-in-a-row. Instead, he brings our attention to the elephant in the room. The best method of dealing with an issue is head on. Fitzpatrick is a little different from the rest of the Kilkenny pack, you see. There is a glint in this young man's eye. He hurls like no other as well.

The captaincy and its burden on such young shoulders is the first issue on the agenda. As expected, he deflects the position of outright leader to others. He will talk if required and has led men before, but he best serves his team with a remarkable array of skills.

"In the Kilkenny team most of the players are leaders and most of the players do a lot of talking and obviously Brian (Cody) is the main man and he is a very inspirational man to get us going for a match. I don't put too much pressure on myself. I'm just one-fifteenth of a cog. That's the way it works."

Fitzpatrick has always been more than that. He arrived in the national arena like most young Kilkenny hurlers - shining in Croke Park for the minor All-Ireland winning sides of 2002 and 2003. Richie Power was the captain the second year and was perhaps the most influential player on the team, due in part to an injury-blighted season for Fitzpatrick. But every time he flicked up the sliotar in that rapid motion, a wave of excitement spread through the crowd - friend and foe alike.

There is this unique swagger to his play; an untainted determination that has been carried up to the highest levels.

A graduate, like so many, of the famed St Kieran's College, it takes someone truly exceptional to be deemed first among equals in that pot of black and amber.

They knew he was coming in Kilkenny for some time and he duly graduated from the minors and lined out in the 2004 All-Ireland final at corner forward against Cork, which Kilkenny lost.

The meteoric rise stalled momentarily the following year as like everyone else under Cody, he was forced to earn his place in the Kilkenny midfield.

"I was only 19. It wasn't a great experience but I definitely learned from it and I've grown from that. I was taken off that day (the 2004 final). Things didn't go well for me. Any time I want to motivate myself all I have to do is think about that day in 2004 we got beat. It wasn't a nice place to be."

That was the first failed three-in-a-row bid by this panel.

The pace and natural scoring ability associated with the usual Kilkenny attacker is not evident in Fitzpatrick. He plays to a different tune and revels in the manic breaking-ball environment. He'll belt over a point from 75 yards that no one has a right to do.

He has buckets of personality as well. He studied chemical engineering at UCC (where he played Fitzgibbon Cup) before switching to primary school teaching, perhaps to ensure the slate is cleared for summer.

Now captain of the Kilkenny senior hurlers and surrounded by tape recorders at a press night, he comes across as slightly withdrawn, which is understandable. Fitzpatrick might be exceptional but he also understands the need to toe the party line. It is the Kilkenny way.

Living near the north Waterford border, we imagine Fitzpatrick would love the craic these past few weeks, happily smiling at all those Waterford men who have attempted to engage him. You see, for a white-collar Kilkenny graduate this is what they hurl for. Every year.

For Waterford old-timers like Ken McGrath and Tony Browne, this is what they have dreamed about. Every year.

"You can feel the excitement all right down around that area. I'd be in Waterford a bit myself so I suppose there is going be a lot more hype in Waterford as it is their first All-Ireland in a long time," says Fitzpatrick.

"In Kilkenny we are a bit more used to it. But in the southern area, along the border there is a lot of tension and a lot of banter too and a bit of craic," he adds.

He has steamed through the ranks to reach this juncture but with Ballyhale Shamrocks county champions and Henry Shefflin having already served his term as captain it naturally falls to the next member of the champions to take his place alongside the greats of Kilkenny hurling.

James Fitzpatrick could be the chosen one who leads Kilkenny to the three-in-a-row. They came up short in 2004 - when he was still unaware of the requirements of an All-Ireland final - and 1994 and 1984 and 1976.

In many respects these failures have come down to hunger. Not a lack of it on the part of Kilkenny, but rather the ravenous nature of their opponents. In Waterford they have not been in a final since 1963. They haven't finished the job since 1959.

"You have to question yourself whether you still have the hunger when you are going so long and going for three-in-a-row. It is probably a doubt for us whether we have the hunger, but I think we showed against Cork we played very tough and hit hard and took the hits as well," he says.

"It was a match we needed and I think that match showed we still have the hunger."

Only a fool would doubt him.

Fitzpatrick Facts

Age: 23

Club: Ballyhale Shamrocks

Honours won: 2 All-Ireland senior medals (2006, 2007); 2 All-Ireland minor medals (2002, 2003); 2 All-Ireland under-21 medals (capt 2004); 4 Leinster medals; 2 National league medals; All-Ireland club medal (2007); 2 All-Stars; Young hurler of the year 2006