In Ireland, trainer Tom Dreaper was not so sure. Two days before Mill House's Gold Cup win he saw his charge Arkle storm off with the Broadway Chase for novices.

He immediately targeted the following year's Gold Cup, but few heard his proclamation amidst the din surrounding Mill House.

The rivals first meeting came in the Hennessy Gold Cup at Newbury in November 1963, which Mill House won. But while many saw the victory as a validation, Arkle jockey Pat Taaffe blamed himself for the loss due to a mistake made three from home.

Their paths next crossed at the 1964 Gold Cup, and the rivalry was being stoked up by people billing it as Ireland's finest versus England's finest. There was a degree of irony in this, given that Mill House was bred in Kildare and taught to jump by Taaffe himself, but regardless, interest was huge by the time the horses went to post. Sticking to previously agreed upon tactics, Taaffe held Arkle back until the time was right to pounce, running two or three lengths off Mill House before moving closer two from home. He landed in front at the last and then astounded the crowd and the racing world by lengthening his stride and moving away from Mill House to win easily.

Taaffe and Arkle returned the following year and, as our picture shows, being overcome by loneliness was the only danger to them as they destroyed a field that again included Mill House by over 20 lengths. In the 1966 renewal he started as the shortest priced favourite in history (1/10) and justified the mathematics by again winning easily despite an awful error early on in the race.

Well before this astonishing trilogy of wins was completed, even Mill House's most ardent fans had already conceded that Arkle was the superior horse, and he had laid an almost unquestioned claim to being the greatest National Hunt horse of all time.