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By Daire Walsh It 's in the Blood W hen it came to seeking guidance about how to approach an All-Ireland final in Croke Park, Kildare defender Lauren Murtagh didn't have far to go in advance of the Lilywhites' intermediate championship showpiece against Clare on August 13. On her mother Orla's side, Murtagh is the granddaughter of legendary Tipperary GAA figure Michael 'Babs' Keating. Over the course of an 11-year spell as a senior hurler with the Premier County, the Ardfinnan native played in four Liam McCarthy Cup deciders at the Jones' Road venue–coming out on the winning side against Kilkenny in the 1964 and 1971 finals. Keating later went into management and was at the helm for Galway's All-IrelandSHC reversal to Kilkenny at Croker in 1979. After losing out to the Tribesmen as Tipperary boss in 1988, he steered them towards national championship triumphs in 1989 and 1991. Having experienced All- Ireland finals day in Croke Park on eight occasions as an adult (and three times with the Tipperary minor hurlers), Keating had considerable wisdom to pass onto Murtagh for what turned out to be a nail-biting 2-11 to 2-10 victory against Clare. "I had a few chats with him. I had a few phone calls before today, telling me about Croke Park. The wind and the grass. To have him there even telling me. He has his All-Irelands and now I get to show him mine. I'm absolutely delighted," Murtagh remarked outside the winning dressing room in GAA HQ. Keating isn't the only family member that Murtagh is able to look to for inspiration, however, as her father Johnny is a well- known Irish flat racing trainer and former jockey with over 100 major wins to his name. He has also been heavily involved in coaching with the Milltown club that are based just outside of Newbridge in south Kildare and is currently in charge of their senior ladies team. This means that both Lauren and her sister Grace who is also a part of the extended Lilywhites set up are managed at club level by him and he was a constant presence along with his other half at Kildare's games throughout 2023. Him and Mam have been an inspiration for me. My Mam grew up in the GAA game. He [Johnny] has done his bit and I think we're getting into our bits now. I'm absolutely delighted and to have them there as well cheering me on. Both my Granddad and my Mam, and my Dad, everyone. It was great ."In claiming the TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate Football Championship crown forthe second time, Kildare finished the year with three trophies to their name. Before securing the TG4 Leinster IFC title with a 2-12 to 1-8 triumph against Wexford at Laois Hire O'Moore Park on May 28, the Lilies enjoyed another dramatic success over Clare in the Lidl National Football League Division 3 showpiece at Parnell Park in the previous month.Inseparable at the end of normal time (2-10 a piece), it took a late Róisín Byrne point (her 10th of the game) to ultimately squeeze Kildare through in extra-time. It came as little surprise that a single point was the difference between the sides in this encounter, given the Lilies also defeated Clare by the bare minimum in the 2016 intermediate decider (1- 13 to 1-12).They looked set for a more comfortable victory in their latest All-Ireland final appearance as goals from Trina Duggan and Ellen Dowling handed the Leinster champions a seven point interval advantage over the Banner County. This cushion remained intact until the final minutes of the game, when Chloe Moloney and Fidelma Marrinan rattled the net to give Clare a fighting chance of success.This led to some nervous moments amongst Kildare's players, management team and supporters alike, but the Lilies eventually held out for another slender win. 20 | AUTUMN 2023 | www.ladiesgaelic.ie INTERVIEW