The extraordinary work put in by counties could be to blame for the growing number of inter-county players bringing their careers to a premature end, Jimmy Barry-Murphy has speculated.
Kilkenny have been hit by a raft of retirements since their All-Ireland SHC success last September but it was Tipperary's Lar Corbett's decision to call time on his career that created the biggest shock in the GAA.
Barry-Murphy has returned to management after an absence of 11 years and he has been surprised at how the sport has changed, especially when it comes to the workload placed on players.
While impressed at the level of work, Barry-Murphy believes players cannot sustain that for long and has warned premature retirements will become the norm.
"It’s extraordinary what these lads are doing nowadays, unbelievable," he said.
"I knew they were doing it but it’s only when you’re back involved yourself you see the intensity that’s been brought to preparation. And they’re all at it — we’re just trying to do the same. The time-span of a playing career is not as long as it was in my time.
"It’s a totally different era. There’s an extraordinary difference and I presume that can only be the reason for a lot of players opting out. In Kilkenny they’ve put in a good few years on the road and I’d say that some of their fringe players didn’t feel like they could still keep making that sacrifice, because it is massive.
"These fellas are training five, six, seven nights a week. In fairness they want to do it, there’s no-one putting a gun to their heads, but the preparation nowadays is extraordinary, that’s the way it’s gone," he told the Irish Examiner.