Anderson tops GC with win in Licola

Jack Anderson (Budget Forklifts) has won the fifth stage of the Tour of Gippsland and taken the overall lead in the process, topping a three-man breakaway that stayed 10-seconds clear of a chase pack.

Anderson started the stage five seconds in arrears of yellow jersey Alex Edmondson (Euride Racing) but his win on the second stage of the day on Friday, was enough with the South Australian in the 18-man group that followed the lead trio across the finish line.

Nathan Earle (Huon-Genesys) finished third on the stage and moved up to second on GC while Alex Morgan (Jayco/Apollo VIS Men's Road Team) was runner-up and four seconds further back overall.

"I’m very happy," said Anderson. "I came into this tour with a really bad cold and I said to the guys 'every day I will get better' and I think the best is yet to come.

"I got the yellow jersey after stage one in Perth but lost it the next day," he continued. "Hopefully this time with a bit more luck and better legs we can defend the jersey until Sunday."

Earle had escaped on his own with 15km to go on the 97km stage, but Anderson made contact with the Tasmanian and passed him just 50 metres before the finish.

"We didn't panic, the team knew if we could get over the top of that final King of the Mountain then there was still 15km to the finish, and in these weather conditions that’s a long way to be out the front," Anderson explained.

The race neutral was extended following an early fall but once the flag dropped no one from the bunch was keen to over extend themselves into the block headwind.

Not long after the beginning of the race proper, former yellow jersey Ben Grenda (Polygon Australia) withdrew from the race. Grenda complained of knee trouble after the morning criterium and his withdrawal comes as a major blow to the Tasmanian outfit.

Pat Shaw (Huon-Genesys) jumped clear on a solo break and hovered off the front of the peloton whilst waiting for some partners in crime. Not long after reinforcements reached him the bunch reeled them all in and it was all together in anticipation for the cross winds that were soon to hit.

As riders turned and the prevailing winds ripped through the sides of the bunch the regular chaos ensued. Huon-Genesys were doing damage with many groups being splintered off the back. The terms 'ugly' and 'filthy' were just a couple of the adjectives used to describe the horrid conditions that riders faced.

Some regrouping occurred at around 30km into the stage as the race returned to direct headwinds. A main bunch of 50 riders formed at the head of affairs. It only took a few kilometres of riding into the strong winds again before the lead bunch lost its enthusiasm and the two main groups re-joined leaving nearly 100 riders back in the peloton. Those who had not yet re-joined were fighting tooth and nail in the convoy, just hanging on for dear life.

Not long after the race settled Cameron Parlevliet (Croydon Cycleworks) and Jordan Davies (St George Skoda HP Team) were given some leash and quickly shot out to a two minute lead. Davies dropped off the pace heading into the first KOM and Parlevliet was caught by the peloton not long after.

The passive tension in the peloton was soon released as the bunch fragmented upon the day's first KOM. From there on groups were scattered all over the road on the run in to Licola.

Earle was first over the final King of the Mountain with around 14km to go ahead of a peloton that was splintered in the testing conditions. He powered on alone but it wasn't until Anderson joined Morgan in the chase inside the final 10km that Earle was seriously threatened.

"It was right down to the line there," an understandably deflated Earle said. "I could see them [Anderson and Morgan] coming and I wasn't sure if I would get caught or not.

"On the last climb I gave it 100% and to get caught in the last 50 metres is a little upsetting but I gave it everything and that’s all you can do."

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