It's the time of year when you cannot help but look for clues. Flat racing returns to these shores at Doncaster on Saturday and with it comes the promise of new champions and future stars.
At this point 12 months ago, all the chatter was about City of Troy and what he might achieve. Some will say he never lived up to his exalted billing but that is churlish in the extreme – how can a horse that won the Epsom Derby, Coral Eclipse and Juddmonte International have left you disappointed?
Put it another way: City of Troy will certainly be missed this season and there isn’t another flat horse in training at present that evoked the same level of debate and discussion as that flaxen-maned flying machine.