“At times, you have to sit back from results and admire the dedication of fellas, their skill level and commitment. I couldn’t speak more highly of this group of fellas.

“You wouldn’t say they make sacrifices because I don’t think it is a sacrifice. No one makes us come here. It is up to ourselves. If we all drop dead tomorrow morning, the show will go on.

“At the same time, the players make a lot of difficult choices. They forego a lot of stuff and I admire that in them. It is a great way for a young person to be and to spend their younger years. It is great for an old fella, too, to be still able to come and be involved.”

Thirty-five years have elapsed since Ryan coached the Cork seniors when Tadhg Murphy’s late goal halted Kerry’s bid for nine Munster titles in a row.

And it’s been 51 years since he lined out at corner-forward on the afternoon of Cork’s All-Ireland final defeat to Meath.

The game has changed immeasurably over the decades, but he’s slow to hit out at football’s current state.

I wouldn’t be a doom-or-gloom merchant about how football is played nowadays. It has evolved. People are using all sorts of systems to keep the opposition’s scoring down and then try and pick off a score above. I can understand why people do that.

“They come up with a system which they think will suit them and like anything in life, you have to do it the way that suits you, so I am slow to condemn other teams or the game in general.”