City Of Troy's reputation hangs in the balance - the next few months will decide his place in Coolmore's pantheon

A plan to fill this space with a glowing tribute to City Of Troy, drawing parallels with epoch-defining events of 40 years ago, floundered on soft ground in the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown.

I had been reflecting on a week in 1984 bookended by El Gran Senor's victory in the Irish Derby and triumph for his Ballydoyle contemporary Sadler's Wells at Sandown.

For all the extenuating circumstances on Saturday, City Of Troy failed to impress. If the colt's physical stature sparked debate after his 2,000 Guineas debacle, it's unsurprising that the wholly subjective matter of his reputational stature now hangs in the balance.