He'll be celebrating his 34th birthday next month, but Longford defender Paddy Fox hasn’t as much inter-county mileage on the clock as some of his peers.
The Mullinalaghta man was 25 by time he got a first taste of senior action, putting behind him some serious injury misfortune.
Having featured at underage level, he was into the senior panel before a cruciate injury cruelly halted his progress. He worked his way back in only to be struck down by the same injury on his other leg.
It was 2018 when then manager Padraic Davis brought him into the fold. He’s been there ever since, Mike Solan the fifth manager he has worked under.
"Sometimes lads go straight in from minor, it's a lot of mileage on the clock, whereas I used to feel reasonably fresh, the body is in reasonably good nick," Fox told RTÉ Sport.
"There were some minor things from the knee and that kind of stuff, but the management, I suppose goodwill in the bank, I'd get let off the odd Thursday training and that kind of stuff."
Fox is effusive in the praise for Solan in fostering a togetherness in the group, while there is an acknowledgement that Paddy Christie was popular among the players despite not achieving the championship targets they had set out during his two-year stint, including defeats to Waterford, Kildare and Leitrim in last year’s Tailteann Cup.
It is Davis however who has left the strongest imprint on the defender. While on a decent championship run with Mullinalaghta, Fox was afforded time to concentrate solely on club matters and that balance is something he has carried over.
"He (Davis) said, 'you can’t be slaves to your masters. As far as I'm concerned at the moment, you're with your club. When your club is done, as far as I'm concerned, you're with me’ and I thought that was a great way of dealing with it.
"That's the way I've approached it since then. When I’m with Longford, I’m with Longford.
"I go to the club matches and stuff when I can if they're on. As soon as I'm done with Longford, I'll be straight back with Mullinalaghta and I'll be full hell for leather with them."
Fox is still the first man Longford turn to when it comes to picking up the main attacking threat, a responsibility he doesn’t take lightly.
Working in cyber security for Longford County Council, he probably has a sixth sense for snuffing out danger.
"You want the job but you don't want the job," he says. "It's good, you like the pressure too. It's nice being given that responsibility at the back to take their best man."
The concession of two early goals against Wexford proved insurmountable in their Tailteann Cup Group 4 opener last week, though Fox did saunter up from the full-back line to get on the scoresheet.
Tomorrow they welcome a Fermanagh side to Pearse Park also looking to get off the mark after a surprise reversal at the hands of Carlow.
The long and the short of it being that defeat will be a huge blow to hopes of progression to the knockout stages.
The Erne County, having just missed out on promotion to Division 2, will enter as strong favourites against a side that lost four from seven in the bottom tier.
"Fermanagh are probably a lower Division 2, upper Division 3 team. "We've played Fermanagh a good few times and you’d hope in Pearse Park, you could have a good handle on them."
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