If you had to chose just two words to sum up Darren Rafferty's attitude after the U23 road race at the UCI World Road Championships they'd have to be 'bitterly disappointed'.
Perhaps not since Eddie Dunbar in Innsbruck in 2018 did Ireland have such a strong chance to take a medal, even win, the U23 world title race. And with Rafferty's results this year - 2nd in Next Gen Giro, winning Giro Ciclistico della Valle d'Aosta-Mont Blanc (2.2U) and placing 5th in the U23 in Stirling last week - all the indicators were pointing towards this, perhaps, being Ireland's best ever chance.
In the end, though the Irish put up a determined performance, with four finishers from five, the race unfolded against the men in green. An early breakaway made it all the way, some chasers did make it across, though Ireland's efforts in that regard were not successful.
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And when the race to Glasgow was run - all 168.4km of it, in sodden and windy conditions - a wet and dejected Rafferty stood in the mixed zone and, refreshingly, made no effort to hide his bitter disappointment.
"It was hard, I'm a bit disappointed to be honest," he said after the race, that disappointment very clear ti see during that post-race interview.
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"I thought the race was going to come back a bit more, towards the group of favorites," he explained of most of the early breakaway men - who went away with 150km to go - making it all the way to the finish, with just two riders getting across to them.
"The intensity went out of it in the last few laps and I'd burnt quite a few matches at the start after a crash coming into the circuit and then another crash in the rain, so there was a lot of chasing.
"I felt really good today and I really felt like I'd be up for a solid result but in the end I got nothing out of it really. But I have to say a huge thanks to the boys, it's one of the first times we've all stuck together in the lead in to the circuit.
"We did what we could for position and I was coming into the circuit in the top 20 and there was a crash right in front and there wasn't really much I could do. It was just a wearing down process, and even in the end some people slipped off the front and there wasn't really much effort in the group to chase anything back so it kinda just fizzled out in the end.
"We ended up losing quite a bit of time on the last lap and I just rolled it in, maybe top 30; not really the result I thought I was capable of. Onto the next one… it was a nice atmosphere, good crowds, many people from home out cheering. I'm glad it's over now."
Rafferty was 25th, in a group 3:16 back. Doogan was 66th today at 12:25, with Dean Harvey and Jamie Meehan in the same group, placing 70th and 71st. Aaron Wade was among the non-finishers, of which there were very many after a very tough day out.
