Robbie McEwen's bid for a first stage win on this year's Tour de France was postponed for another day, but on the third stage the Aussie sprinter will be one to watch.

Sunday's second stage — the second of three days in wind and rainswept Brittany — took its toll on the peloton, most of whom came in feeling the effects of a late, fast pursuit of a four-man breakaway.

In the end the four Frenchman relented, and a late attack by Fabian Cancellara — who was followed by Italian Filippo Pozzatto — was cancelled out by the collective power of the Credit Agricole team.

At the end of the 164.5km stage, one of the brightest smiles was to be found on the face of Australian Mark Renshaw, who pulled Norwegian team-mate Thor Hushovd on his back wheel past the yellow jersey of Alejandro Valverde towards victory on the slightly uphill finish line.

It was Hushovd's sixth stage win on the race, and gives him a launchpad for a charge at his second green jersey for the points competition.

The man known as "Schwarzy", for the muscles that ripple under his green Credit Agricole shirt, was quick to share out the plaudits.

"It's always dangerous when a rider like Cancellara attacks like that. But at 600 metres to go, I told Mark 'don't panic, I'm on your wheel'.

"He pulled me in for another two hundred metres and then I pulled out and finished on my own. He did a perfect lead-out for me."

In the confusion of the final kilometre, Renshaw thought he had lost his team leader.

"I'm still a bit shocked," Renshaw told AFP.

"Near the end I got caught with a bit of a wave and for a bit I thought Thor had crashed. Then I heard him behind me and he went with about 400 metres to go, pulling out of the outside of Valverde.

"On an uphill finish like that nobody's going to beat a sprinter like Thor."

He added: "It's great for us, and for Thor, although it doesn't necessarily take the pressure off us. With Thor going for the green jersey I would say it puts the pressure on us. It's going to be a long road."

Asked if Hushovd would be shouting the beers on Sunday, Renshaw said: "No, I don't think so. But maybe once we get a new sponsor he can put in a good word for me!"

Credit Agricole are currently looking for a new backer after deciding this will be their last year in the professional peloton.

According to rumours here, McEwen could also be riding for a new team following Silence's decision to hire Philippe Gilbert, and to give all their support to yellow jersey favourite Cadel Evans, who on Sunday remained just 01sec behind Valverde.

McEwen's bid for a first stage win on this year's race was given no help when teammate Leif Hoste, the only rider Silence had assigned to help the Aussie sprinter, crashed inside the last two kilometres.

He picked up a knock on his right knee, and scrapes and bruises, but was most upset at not being able to help McEwen.

"I'm not so bad, but I'm annoyed I couldn't help Robbie in the sprint."

Australian Stuart O'Grady also had a tough day in the saddle after a stage which saw the entire peloton up the pace in the latter stages in a bid to catch the break.

O'Grady's job is to chaperone CSC's team leader Carlos Sastre as much as he can, making sure the Spaniard stays on his bike and limits his losses to the favourites.

But with race co-favourite Valverde in the lead, and his Caisse d'Epargne team riding up at the front for most of the day, the task did not prove easy.

"My job is to keep Carlos protected as much as possible and make sure he doesn't lose any time," O'Grady told AFP.

"But in conditions like that — when you're going up and down all day in a crazy peloton where everybody's nervous — it's hard enough keeping yourself up at the front never mind anyone else."

AFP