They are hard to come by these days and even harder to get hold of, but Mick Channon is a sporting icon.

Once a top-notch international footballer, he has since elevated himself to the upper echelons of racehorse trainers. He’s a busy man, and pinning him down for a chat is as hard now as it once was for opponents to catch him on the football field.

Back in the day, it was his pace, turns and tricks on the ball that made Channon so elusive during stints with Southampton (he’s still their highest goal-scorer with more than 200 goals), Manchester City, Norwich, Portsmouth and England (21 goals in 46 games).