Glenn O'Shea's chuckle was dry, typical of the matter-of-fact country Victorian and his decades in high-performance cycling.
Standing in the middle of the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, the coach of the Australian men's team pursuit squad was asked what it was like to lose to England in the Commonwealth Games Ashes gold medal ride-off.
"It sucks a bit, yeah," he told AAP.
"Obviously we come here to win.
"We want to build towards LA, but the group is super-motivated to win every time they step on the track.
"It's an enjoyable rivalry ... except when you lose."
As a star former team pursuiter and a track coach of several years' experience, O'Shea came in with eyes wide open when he took over from Tim Decker as coach of the men's track endurance squad.
Decker, who had guided his riders to silver and bronze at the previous two Olympics, produced a masterclass at the Paris Olympics.
Australia won the men's team pursuit Games gold for the first time since 2004, breaking the world record on the way to beating Great Britain in a pulsating final.
O'Shea was in the quartet that was beaten by the British for gold at the 2012 Olympics. Two years later in Glasgow, he won Commonwealth Games gold in the event.
"I was a part of it as a rider - to now be the coach, it's exciting," he said.
"The expectation is always there - I had that as a rider and it's the same as a coach.
As much as Matt Richardson's defection dominated the cycling headlines at the Glasgow Games, make no mistake - there is a strong sense of "Australia expects" in the men's team pursuit.
There are other strong nations, particularly Denmark and Italy, but Australia v the British is at the core of the event at the worlds and Olympics.
Featuring Paris gold medallists Oli Bleddyn and Conor Leahy, Australia were competitive in the Glasgow final, but technically they were slightly off their game and a strong England combination pounced.
It contrasted with the men's individual pursuit the next day, when Bleddyn led a clean sweep of the medals ahead of Leahy and James Moriarty.
"They bounced back really well. They clean-swept the IP and the ability's there," O'Shea said.
"That's the beauty of the TP. We may have the engines, but we have to put it together."
O'Shea and Decker grew up together in Bendigo, which has a strong cycling culture. Decker remains heavily involved in the sport and they keep in regular touch.
"It was an interesting situation, to step into the role," O'Shea said.
"I still have him for support. I still talk to him regularly.
"He did a great job - big shoes to fill. I'm lucky, being such good friends with him, that I feel like I have his full support and help.
Another set of eyes is new women's track endurance coach Ash Ankudinoff - like O'Shea, formerly a top rider in the team pursuit.
She started a year ago and one of the highlights of Australia's domination in cycling at Glasgow was her clear impact on the women's squad.
O'Shea coached Ankudinoff at the Rio Olympics and they are picking each other's brains now as fellow coaches.
"It's vice versa. One of the main things we picked up early was making sure we found the time to watch each other's programs a bit - not be afraid to ask for advice or give advice," he said.
"It's another set of eyes. It's good to have a sounding board.
"She's doing a great job, it's awesome to see.
