Mill Reef made his debut in May in the Salisbury Stakes at Salisbury, where he beat the previous winner and 2-9 favourite, the Lester Piggott-ridden Fireside Chat, by four lengths. He then went to Royal Ascot winning the Coventry Stakes by six lengths, and the decision was made to go to France for the Prix Robert Papin at Maisons-Laffitte. After an arduous journey, Mill Reef tasted defeat for the first time by the narrowest of margins to another exceptional English two-year-old, My Swallow.