At that age, everything looked big – the ball, the field, the opposition – but in his case doubly so.

He was tiny. So small other parents openly questioned on the touchline whether it was safe for him to be playing.

Thirty-four years on, Stringer is still small. And he is still playing.

At 5ft 7in and 11st 5lbs, he is the exception that proves the rule of big being ever more beautiful in rugby union. At 40 – a landmark the former Ireland scrum-half reached on Tuesday – he is also defying the ageing odds on a daily basis.

The Peter Pan of Rugby is nearing the end of his current short-term contract with Worcester but he has no intention of hanging up his boots when he departs Sixways on December 31.

“It’s not an ideal time of year to be looking for a club – I’m chatting to my agent to get a feel for what is out there – but hopefully there will be an opportunity in the New Year to get me through to the end of the season,” said Stringer, who won 98 caps for his country.

“I’m keen to keep playing. I still feel I’m able to play at this level and I still love rugby.

“Guys are getting bigger and it is becoming more physical but I’ve had to deal with big and physical guys all my life. Everyone I come against is 20, 30, 40kg heavier than me but, like anything in life you learn skills to help you cope with situations.

“I try to operate as I’ve always done – be in most places that the ball is and get the ball away before defences are set.

“My body feels really good and I’m still enjoying what I’m doing. Forty is just a number.”

Stringer’s career stretches back into the last century when he made his debut for Munster with whom he won the European Cup, as a try-scoring man of the match, in 2006.

He has since played for five Premiership sides – Saracens, Newcastle, Bath, Sale and now Worcester, passing the 450-game mark for club and country in the process.

The secret? The body as a temple.

“I’ve always been very strict with myself – overly strict if you speak to my wife. I can be quite obsessed with it all but when you see the benefits of eating well and looking after yourself you want to carry on with that,” said Stringer.

“It’s not a chore; it’s something I love doing which makes it a hell of a lot easier.

“I’ve given myself every opportunity to be on the field. It’s a relatively short period in our lives that we get to play at this level and I would live with regrets if I didn’t do everything I could to continue playing as long as I possibly could.”

If Stringer and his metronomic passing game has not changed during his time at the coalface, the sport has and not necessarily for the better.

“When I first started there was a lot more room in the game – the games were often a lot more free-flowing – but with defence coaches coming in it has become a lot more of a tactical game. You look up and sometimes there are 14 guys on their feet across the pitch,” he observed.

Worcester, despite the distraction of being up for sale, are beginning to crack the code. They have recorded three bonus-point wins in their last four matches ahead of tonight’s trip to Oyonnax in the European Challenge Cup.

“I’m not involved in Europe. They’re giving a few of the younger guys a go and I don’t fall into that category any more. But it certainly has turned round,” said Stringer.

“The first few months of the season, it wasn’t a great environment to be around. Sometimes it’s hard to get out of a rut when you’re on a streak of losing games, on top of all the external stuff that was happening at the club, but everyone has rallied together and we’ve scored a lot of tries in the last month. We’re playing a lot more attractive rugby. We’re running from areas of the pitch where we would have been kicking at the start of the season.”

Looming large is next Friday’s Premiership relegation shoot-out against London Irish before a Festive knees-up in the west of Ireland, Stringer-style.

“I’ll have a few roast potatoes on Christmas Day,” he conceded. “There are times when you need to relax a bit and enjoy yourself.”