Sexton wants the last word
Man of few words. Lives for football. Gives nothing away.
It's a good plan, just a pity it falls to pieces as soon as you meet him.
Sexton is relaxed and chatty when we sit down. in a pub outside Ballineen, referring immediately to his previous reticence with the press.
"There were always plenty of fellas to do it before but I'm getting older now, I just felt I'd have to face up to it at some stage. It just wasn't my thing."
Even the "lives for football" cliché takes a blow when you consider his brief flirtation with Sunday's Well rugby club last year. Still, some truths are eternal, like Cork and Kerry in the Munster football final.
"That tradition is always there. It's a huge occasion and a lot of us were at the Cork-Tipperary hurling final, which was an amazing occasion."
The advent of the qualifier system means it's not winner take all, but Sexton points out that the second chance carries a challenge of its own.
"Before the back door losing a Munster championship game meant you were out for the year; since it came in you just have to get yourself back and pick yourself up as quick as you can, which isn't always an easy thing to do one year we had to play the week after losing a Munster final, which was terribly hard.
Much as you don't want to (after losing), you just have to get it out of your head and get back training again."
Cork's attack has come in for criticism in recent years, but Sexton rejects any suggestion the team is unbalanced in favour of the defence.
"I wouldn't say that forwards need good ball as well, so everyone's in it together. Sometimes it's a mistake to divide the players like that, it's a 20-man game and everyone's working together. I wouldn't favour that distinction.
"You start every year confident and full of beans, and I suppose this year was no different. One thing we have now is fierce strength in depth, we have over 30 at training and the competition means nobody is sure of their place. That's how you want it, everyone fighting like a dog at training, everyone bringing each other on. There are some new players, which means competition and freshness for the panel."
It also means those players have to get to know each other. Cork had the kind of up and down league campaign associated with the bedding in of new players, which the Kilbrittain man acknowledges.
"We've been inconsistent from game to game, and sometimes in games as well we've had 20 good minutes and 20 bad minutes in some matches. Still, we've tried to work on our strong points in training in the last couple of weeks.
"We didn't qualify for the latter part of the league, so we missed out on some good games, but all in all we were happy with the league."
Cork certainly looked like a team which had wintered well against Clare in the Munster semi-final, but as a defender, Sexton focuses on the opposition attack.
"After half-time Clare could have had a few scores, they were on top at that stage and that's when a team has to punish you. They were a little unlucky with a few wides which probably knocked their motivation, and that left us with a gap in scores.
"Since then most fellas have had two weeks and a championship game with their clubs, the only disadvantage is that we've had just two weeks back with Cork, but they've been pretty intense."
Training needs to be intense, considering the opponents.
Against a team like Kerry, Sexton doesn't think the underdog tag is much consolation.
"Kerry have been massively impressive. In the games against Limerick last year people said they weren't moving well and they became All-Ireland champions. That's Kerry. They're never beaten. They've got quality and a good set of forwards.
"You talk about New Zealand at rugby, and Kerry are like that, they thrive on being favourites. Teams that have done it time after time in the past don't worry about being favourites, and Kerry are nearly favourites in every game they play and that doesn't faze them."
One of the trump cards Kerry have to play is a certain Mr. Cooper. Sexton is generous in his appraisal: "Unbelievable, an absolute quality player. We saw him come to fruition in 2002 and at the time you couldn't think he'd improve any more, but he's improved every year since. When he gets quality ball he's so elusive, he seems to be unmarkable. A great player."
When it comes to winning the game, the Cork star sidesteps the cliché about the midfield battle "Breaking ball will be a big issue players, whether they're backs or forwards, have to get their bodies in to win loose ball and get it to a man in space." but he's upfront about the captaincy.
And lastly, that rugby career? There's a hearty laugh.
"I wasn't in the frame for Clive Woodward or anything. Check back in four years time, I might be the oldest Lion ever!"
See? Man of few words. Lives for football. Gives nothing away.
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