THE going may be tougher but the national road squad have shown they can perform despite numerous disadvantages, including the lack of a full-time coach, by sending out a strong message in the ongoing Tour de Thailand.

Loh Sea Keong had on Wednesday registered his first ever international race victory when he bagged Stage Three of the race, and it didn't stop there.

Fauzan Ahmad Lutfi only just lost out to Tabriz Petrochemical's Iranian sprinter Hossein Nateghi in the sprint for the finish in Stage Four on Thursday, and yesterday Hafiz Rozli bagged third spot in Stage Five.

On top of that, the national team coached by Omar Saad, are fifth in the teams classification entering the final stage today, with Amir Mustafa Rusli in second spot behind Nateghi in the points classification.

"Ah Keong (Sea Keong) showed he can win on Wednesday. In fact Amir was with him in the breakaway before getting dropped when the front pack put the hammer down," said team leader Fauzan, when contacted yesterday.
"When it was my turn to go for the win the next day, I tried but I'm not a sprinter, so I had to be satisfied with second behind Nateghi."

The team look good as they prepare to build towards the Under-23 World Championships in Varese, Italy in two weeks time.