Former Waterford defender Stephen Frampton says Michael 'Brick' Walsh won't rest until he gets his hands on that elusive All-Ireland medal.

Following the retirement of Westmeath's Brendan Murtagh last month, 'Brick' now shares the distinction of being inter-county hurling's longest serving player along with Dublin pair David 'Dotsy' O'Callaghan and Gary Maguire, having made his Deise debut in 2004.

Work colleague Frampton wasn't surprised to see Walsh return this season in his latest quest for All-Ireland glory.

He told the Irish Independent: "Last year he had a real good year, having had a quieter year in 2015. A lot of fellas would have said, 'I'll cut my losses here, I've had a fantastic career, I've finished at the top'.

"That would be 99 per cent of inter-county players who are around that long but I know he has got a burning desire to try and reach the pinnacle and get that All-Ireland medal and that's obviously what keeps him going."

Frampton also noted: "He never seems to get injured. It's not as if he tries to look after himself.

"He's on that team because of physicality and his ball-winning skills. He's not a fella that dodges the ball either. He gets in to do the dirty stuff for the flyers.

"We have lots of good hurlers in that team but not as many ball-winners as we would have had a few years ago. If you're under pressure that's the word, throw it out to 'Brick'. At worst he will hold it up. He's great ball-winner and he proved that with his massive start against Wexford and it set the tone for the whole match."

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