As disappointed Mayo fans filtered out of Dr Hyde Park last June, a championship exit confirmed by Ciarán Moore's last-gasp point for Donegal, one of the talking points was the possible end of an era.
Manager Kevin McStay, who had stepped aside temporarily for health reasons, would ultimately not return to the hotseat, while Cillian O’Connor’s future looked uncertain as he remained outside the playing loop.
There was also the possibility of Aidan O’Shea having played his last game in the green and red.
The Breaffy man's longevity sits apart in the modern game. A Mayo debutant in 2009, he has featured in every one of the county’s 85 championship games since 2012, with roles varying throughout different regimes. Mayo have slipped from Connacht kingpins and serial All-Ireland challengers to somewhere in the chasing pack, with O'Shea present every step of the way.
With a baby on the way – Romee was born in January – there was good reason why those on the outside last summer might have suspected the motivation tank would be running a little low for the 35-year-old.
Yet the reality was quite different. The call with former team-mate and now manager Andy Moran was a somewhat anxious one, waiting for confirmation that he was still part of the Mayo future. There was no doubt on his own end, more a juggling of work-life balance.
Where does that drive come from?
"It's not rocket science, it's just being disciplined and when your desire is there, it's easy to maintain that discipline," he told RTÉ Sport at the launch of the AIB All-Ireland Senior Football Championship.
"I know the players maybe struggle at times with maybe that desire, but it's never really been something that's kind of flickered and gone away or waned in any way. Playing for Mayo has been unbelievable and something I've always wanted to do.
"As you get a bit older, you're kind of appreciating those years. I would say the desire to play is, if anything, getting stronger because you know that the end is a lot closer than the start."
O’Shea, whose homelife with wife Kristin revolves around a 12-year-old (Cara) and a 12-week-old, says the main consideration was his family.
"You're leaving the house a lot and you have a newborn in the house," he said. "I was conscious of that. There was no doubt about wanting to play, but I would say there was probably just some lifestyle things that in previous years I didn't have to think about."
There was no let-up for O’Shea in the league – he featured in all seven of their games as they finished third in Division 1, a point adrift of eventual champions Donegal. A serious trimming in Tralee aside, it was a most satisfactory campaign, ticking all the right boxes for a side looking to end Galway's provincial domination.
New faces are establishing themselves in the set-up such as Darragh Beirne and Cian McHale in the forward line, yet most of the column inches have been reserved for AFL-departing Kobe McDonald.
Some eye-catching cameos have only served to highlight Mayo’s loss, with O’Shea impressed by the teenager’s cool demeanour.
"We've been hearing about Kobe since he was eight or nine years of age," he said. "What I've noticed about him, there's a real self-assuredness about him for an 18-year-old kid. It's not like he's just come into the Mayo squad.
"He's very comfortable in his own skin. I think he nearly is embracing this period of time, conscious of the fact that his intention is to go to Australia and be an absolute success. I think he's just enjoying getting in and training with us.
"I think he's just going to carry it like that throughout the year."
It’s not all a changing of the guard, with O’Connor back in the fold and Raheny-based Rob Hennelly returning to the inter-county scene, where the new rules and two-pointers have highlighted his importance from placed balls.
"It’s great to have them back," he said. "I think they probably had a lot more to offer before they stepped away," noting that Hennelly's return ensures he is no longer the oldest player on the panel.
"No matter what age you are, Andy is quoted as saying he wants the best players in Mayo in the squad and that was the starting point. Whether they were 18 or 35, that was his thing he went after and he's held true to that."
Earning a starting spot for the Connacht opener against London this weekend is the primary focus now, hungry as ever to do his bit for the cause.
The last time O’Shea didn’t feature for his county in championship, Barack Obama was in his first term as US president and Jim Gavin had yet to take over as Dublin manager.
What would the 18-year-old debutant in New York in 2009 have thought if he was told he'd still be here in 2026?
"Ah, you'd probably find it hard to believe all right," he said. "It's kind of mad. It's flown as well and doesn't feel like I’m heading into my 18th championship season.
"I'd probably be pleasantly surprised and delighted to still be preparing for the championship season. He probably would have thought, at this age, maybe my body wouldn't have held up.
"I’m delighted to be able to still do it physically in good shape and injury-free."
Watch Armagh v Tyrone in the Ulster Football Championship on Sunday from 4pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow our live blog on RTÉ.ie/sport and RTÉ News app and listen to Sunday Sport on RTÉ Radio 1
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