Orica-GreenEdge was a very visible presence in this year's Driedaagse van de Panne. With plenty of work at the head of the peloton, the team was one of the most aggressive in the race, but the overall 7th place for GC leader Luke Durbridge was not what the team had hoped for.

Orica-GreenEdge entered the Driedaagse van de Panne with a dual objective. They hoped to set up Luke Durbridge for the overall win while sprinter Leigh Howard was supposed to have a shot at a stage win. Neither was achieved despite a very aggressive showing from the team.

With Stuart O'Grady and Michael Hepburn as the driving forces, the team had tried to catch some of Durbridge's GC rivals out in the crosswinds in the morning's first half stage. However, attentive racing from their opponents made it impossible, and in the end the team failed to produce a top result in the final sprint.

Nonetheless, sports director Laurenzo Lapage was happy with the team's showing during the first of today's two rides.

"Their job this morning was to stay near each other and near the front," he explained. "I didn’t want them to get surprised or caught out if I split happened. Short, windy stages are always dangerous in that way. They all realise that riding aggressively makes things a lot easier here. When they see it works, they’re happy to do it."

Durbridge safe

After having lost time to main rival Sylvain Chavanel (Omega Pharma-Quick Step) in both the first and second stage, Durbridge avoided any further loss during the morning's challenges. Lapage was happy to see his captain pass the stage without problems.

"He did the best he could. Conserve is not the right word because it’s impossible to conserve on a stage like this, but he did use his teammates to help keep him safe. He was one of the favourites going into the time trial, and he seemed ready."

The Australian time trial champion only managed a 9th place in the final race against the clock and ended up 7th overall. Having entered the race gunning for the win, it was no surprise that the former U23 world time trial champion was disappointed not to deliver the expected performance after his hard work to remain in contention throughout the first three stages.

" Obviously this is not what he (Durbridge, ed.) wanted, but it’s still a good result to finish seventh overall against a strong, experienced field. He’s very happy with the work his teammates did for him," Lapage explained.

Mouris confident

The team's best finisher in the time trial was Dutchman Jens Mouris who ended up 8th. With Mouris expected to play a key role in Sunday's Tour of Flanders, his performance was an encouraging sign.

" Of course, he is happy," Lapage explained. "It shows that his form is good and will give him a confidence boost to know he will do his job well during Flanders."

Despite the lack of results, the sports director was able to look at the bigger picture and happy to see some of his young riders gain important experience in the very special art of racing in Flanders.

" The team raced great," he said. "I wish they had a better result for the work they did. It’s this sort of racing that allows the younger guys like Michael Hepburn, Leigh Howard and Luke Durbridge to learn the most."

Focus on the Tour of Flanders

The team now turns its attention to Sunday's Tour of Flanders where four of the riders from De Panne will support leader Sebastian Langeveld. The last three days of racing have brought Lapage an optimistic view.

" The focus is there. The team leader is ready. Everyone is motivated. That’s what I see and feel around this group."

Langeveld was 5th in the E3 Prijs Vlaanderen and is one of the big outsiders for De Ronde on Sunday.