All-Ireland SFC Final Countdown: Tom Humphries talks to the doyen of the Kerry team, a man well placed to assess what's needed for victory on Sunday.

Liam Hassett sits down and practically the first question he is asked is one that a lesser character might take offence at.

- Liam, are you surprised that you're still here 10 years on?

He smiles and give a little shake of his head.

- I am, yeah.

He pauses.

- Maybe, though, there's five more years left in me the way I'm going.

The question is a good one though. Hassett is a manager's player and a players' player - the sort of workhorse who makes others look good. Rumours of his demise have been frequent since his debut in 1995, but in the era of Armagh and Tyrone it's hard to put a value on having an experienced half forward with the work-rate to track back in his own half and the physique to ride out the big tackles. He comes to Dublin this weekend looking to win his fourth All-Ireland medal.

His longevity, unusual in the modern game, is all the more remarkable for the eras of Kerry football it has spanned and the adventures Hassett has been through.

In 1997 he was the fresh-faced young captain who got to bring the cup to New York and whose brother Mike was denied a medal. He rode out the controversy and both Hassetts got medals in 2000.

Páidí Ó Sé moved on. Jack O'Connor moved in. Liam Hassett kept seeing off the competition. It doesn't get any easier with any passing year.

"You think about packing it in. It's a long haul. We had our hundredth training session of the year last Tuesday night. That's a lot of work that goes in. You're away seven or eight weekends in a row for league matches. You have to give it everything while you're there. I'm delighted to be part of it, but it's a huge commitment. I have to thank my wife for all the support she gives me."

Football has changed radically in the years of Hassett's senior career. In his debut year, 1995, Kerry didn't escape Munster. They won an All-Ireland two years later beating old-fashioned units like Cavan and Mayo on the big days.

Then, latterly, Tyrone and Armagh have changed the character of the game. He especially remembers the revelation in 2003 that things had changed forever.

"Tyrone came out and they were full of hunger and intensity and they had their homework done on us. There were seven or eight players around one of ours at one stage. They'll come out with fierce hunger and determination again this Sunday and we'll have to be ready.

"We have changed our style a bit. You can't afford to hang around with the ball. Tyrone don't do as much of that type of play as they used to, though. Teams are learning how to cope with them. We have to move the ball fast."

Something which clearly sticks in Hassett's throat and those of the other Kerry players right now is the suggestion that Kerry won't have won a proper All-Ireland until they beat Tyrone or Armagh along the way. Certainly, it must feel odd to football's leading franchise to be compared unfavourably to a couple of counties with one title apiece.

"Last year," he says, "we beat a tough Limerick side in a replay. In Killarney we were eight points down and came back. If Limerick had won they'd get the credit. We got to the final and beat who was in front of us. That's all we can do."

If being a Kerry half forward in the modern era has come to involve an ever-increasing workload, one of the perks must be the calibre of player the bouquets are being handed to. To have worked in the era of Maurice Fitz and then to have been supplier to the Gooch must be a pleasure.

"Well, the Gooch is there. It's always good to have a great inside line to feed. I think he scored a goal and five or something the last day, but there were still 11 players on the scoresheet for us. Whoever we have in there is capable of winning their own ball. That's important.

"There's a good balance to the team now. The older players are there, but the younger players would inspire you. Declan O'Sullivan is a leader at 21. The Gooch is another leader. Paul Gavin is playing great football.

"As for the backs, Tom Sullivan and Mike McCarthy for instance. They said Mike couldn't play full back. Look at him. For me, the younger players and their commitment keep me pushing on."

A fourth All-Ireland medal beckons for the man from Laune Rangers.

If it's the last - and there are no signs it will be - the passing of the flame has been carried out in precise fashion.