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SHANNON Malseed was as superb as she was sneaky, upstaging some of Australian cycling’s biggest names, including Gold Coaster Katrin Garfoot, to claim the national women’s road title.

The 23-year-old local took out a dramatic end to the 104.4km race at Buninyong near Ballarat.

The biggest win of Malseed’s blossoming career also means she has gained automatic selection for the Commonwealth Games road team.

Garfoot made a solo attack with 3km left and it looked like she would pull off a rare “double-double” – successfully defending the women’s road race and time trial titles.

But Malseed was in the sixrider chase group that caught her with just 50m left and won the final sprint.

Lauren Kitchen capped her outstanding ride with a bittersweet silver medal and Grace Brown, like Malseed an emerging talent, was third.

It was a bleak day for the powerful Mitchelton-Scott team with two-time winner Amanda Spratt fourth.

Mitchelton-Scott’s only success was Alex Manly, who finished 18th and successfully defended the under-23 championship. As the big names left Buninyong empty-handed, Malseed said she had ticked off a bucket-list win.

“I’m a little bit sneaky, so I definitely knew I had a chance and that’s all I needed,” she said.

“I think I lost my voice a little bit, I screamed so loud.

“To have this under my belt, so young, I’m so proud of myself and proud of everyone who’s been part of my development - I’m so thankful.”

While Malseed was rapt to make the Commonwealth Games team, she was also critical of Cycling Australia’s new high performance regime.

The focus is now on the track at the expense of the road, especially the women’s development program that was so pivotal for Malseed.

“I’m not going to hide my disappointment in that decision -- it’s a crucial part of developing the road team for the women,” she said.

Kitchen had the ride of the day, being in the lead group throughout. She and former time trial champion Shara Gillow, teammates at the French FdJ squad, combined well.

Gillow was pivotal in bridging the gap to Garfoot at the finish and Kitchen just failed to pull off the win.