And then there were two. And even a cursory look at the results of the Women's All-Ireland senior football championship of this summer will confirm, we've clearly settled on the very best two.
Galway and Kerry have left all challengers trailing in their wake on the way to this afternoon's All-Ireland final at Croke Park.
One demolition job after another. Some predictable - some not so at all.
Having taken care of provincial duties - Kerry winning a Munster final against Waterford and Galway overcoming Mayo in Connacht - both teams ran through the All-Ireland series without pausing to inspect the casualties.
The Tribeswomen put Meath to the sword, then Tyrone before swatting Mayo aside (again) in the All-Ireland quarter-final.
Their semi-final tussle with Armagh was billed as a pretty much even-stevens affair. Not so. Galway put 21 points on the Orchard County who could only manage eight in reply. Those last four games left them with an average winning margin of 16 points.
Kerry enjoyed similar dominance on their own side of the draw. An 18-point win over Tipperary was followed by bloodless victories over Kildare and Meath before they ended Dublin's reign as All-Ireland champions with an emphatic 10-point victory in the semi-final. An average winning margin of 13.5 points with seven green flags raised along the way.
Which all should be good news for the neutral fan at Croke Park this afternoon. Front-foot attacking football is the order of the day for both of these teams.
The LGFA's adoption of the new rules that re-energised the men's game has had a similar effect on the women's game. Indeed, it's only seven years ago that Galway lost a forgettable All-Ireland decider to Dublin on a scarcely believable scoreline of 2-03 to 0-04 in front of over 56,000 fans.
Since their most recent All-Ireland title in 2004, Galway have lost three finals. A valiant attempt to defend their crown in 2005 fell short in the decider as Cork began a run of dominance in the women's game that would see them win 11 of the next 12 All-Irelands.
And after that 2019 loss to Dublin - who were three-quarters of their way to a four-in-a-row themselves - they then suffered a 12-point reversal to today's opponents two years ago as Louise Ní Mhuircheartaigh hit them for a half-dozen points.
Neither side graced the 2025 final as Galway went out at the semi-final stage to eventual champs Dublin after extra-time while Meath made it an all-Leinster final when they took care of the Kingdom by six points in the other semi.
So, all told, Galway have been waiting 24 months or so for another crack at Kerry.
Galway captain Kate Geraghty suggested this week that a lingering feeling may hang around the Galway camp that they simply didn't do themselves justice two years ago.
'When we got to play Kerry two years ago, we were probably just a bit underprepared, and they were better than us'
"In 2019, it was a bit different. It was the first final in a long time," Geraghty offered. "So there was probably huge excitement.
"It was my first year on the panel, and it felt like it was gonna happen every year after that. But I know now that it's hard come by, and the work that you have to put in.
"When we got to play Kerry two years ago, we were probably just a bit underprepared, and they were better than us on the day.
"But I don't think that makes or breaks us this year. We have a lot of different players, and the way that we've been playing and consistent performances makes a huge difference."
Could the lack of a sufficient 'test' in the run-up to the final leave Galway short of vim and vigour on the big day? Former Dublin star Hannah Tyrrell, speaking on the RTE Sport preview of today's game (below), suggested as much.
"Galway certainly have a calibre of players that have the ability to win," Tyrrell said.
"I just think Kerry have been going well. Their experience and the likes of Síofra O'Shea, who for me is going to be Footballer of the Year, just have that slight edge."
Kerry, on the other hand, have their own demons to battle. In 2023 - a year before they dominated Galway in the decider - they went into an All-Ireland final against Dublin tasked with lifting the mood of a county that had seen their men lose a tight final the previous week.
On that occasion, the Kerry women couldn't oblige, making it two fruitless trips to Croke Park in seven days for the county - and 2-0 to old rivals, Dublin. It was Kerry's second straight loss in the All-Ireland final having fallen to a two-in-a-row chasing Meath in 2022.
Well, here we go again as far as the Kingdom ladies are concerned. Chatter about the Kerry-Mayo men's final wasn't far from anybody's lips at the LGFA All-Ireland finals Croke Park press conference this week.
Kerry's freescoring captain Síofra O'Shea, acknowledged that ignoring the men's defeat for their own purposes is something that takes a bit of effort.
As our own Hayley Ryan reported earlier in the week, the Kerry women had discussions before last Sunday regarding the process for their own All-Ireland week, regardless of whether Jack O'Connor's side won or lost.
"Our psychologist is great, and we had a good meeting with her last Friday before the men's final just about how we're sticking with our own game no matter what happens," O'Shea explained.
"She's been great with us and just to focus on our own journey. A lot of us are probably staying away from people this week too, so you wouldn't hear too much about it."
On the pitch, changes are at a minimum as regards the named starting 15s with former captains Louise Ward (Galway) and Anna Galvin (Kerry) selected, with Ellen Power and Mikala Mulvihill dropping out respectively.
Kerry: Mary-Ellen Bolger; Róisin Rahlly, Deirdre Kearney, Eilís Lynch; Aishling O'Connell, Emma Costello, Aoife Dillane; Anna Galvin, Mary O'Connell; Niamh Carmody, Niamh Ní Chonchúir, Caoimhe Evans; Jadyn Lucey, Danielle O'Leary, Síofra O'Shea (c).
Galway: Leah O'Halloran; Brónagh Quinn, Sarah Ní Loimsigh, Kate Geraghty (c); Hannah Noone, Nicola Ward, Niamh Divilly; Louise Ward, Siobhán Divilly; Olivia Divilly, Kate Slevin, Kate Thompson; Eva Noone, Leanne Coen, Róisín Leonard.
Watch The Sunday Game with highlights of the Women's All-Ireland football finals from 9.30pm. Follow our live blog on RTÉ.ie/sport and RTÉ News app and listen to commentary on RTÉ Radio 1
