Cycling: Anderson's strength pays a winning dividend: Sean Yates singled out for acclaim as Australian secures Kellogg's Tour of Britain and praises team-mates efforts at containing threat of challengers

ENGLAND is the place to be if you are Australian and keen to win. Phil Anderson's victory in the Kellogg's Tour of Britain might not be as comprehensive as those of his cricketing compatriots but there was an air of domination about it even if the winning margin was frugal.

He sweated out four of the five days with a lead of four seconds, but then in 1991 he had scraped home by one second. So riding on the edge was nothing new.

'I would not say that it was easier this time. It was a bit dodgy taking the lead on the first day,' Anderson said at the finish here. 'This is a lot to ask of a team who have had a hard season. You always worry that they might crack, but in the end they were well in control.

'We intimidated a lot of the teams with our style and occasionally I would ride harder on a hill just to show that I was still strong. It kept the rest quiet.'

The Italian Wladimir Belli, Anderson's four day 'shadow', tried to slip away in the last mile on the Liverpool circuit but Anderson pounced as rapidly as his Motorola team had done all week. In his tribute to them he gave special mention to Sean Yates. 'He seemed to get stronger with each day,' Anderson said.

Chris Lillywhite who won the Milk Race for the Banana Team again lifted Britain's international clout by winning the sprints jersey. And the day ended on a happier note for Britain than it had started in Bradford. There team manager Sid Barras was fuming about the dismissal of himself and two of his Great Britain professional team, riders Bernie Burns and Nigel Perry.

All three were disqualified and suspended for 15 days for a towing incident on Thursday's stage to Manchester. Both riders needed wheel changes because of punctures and Barras is

accused of allowing them to hold on to his car as he drove to the rear of the race.

'It was only 50 metres,' he said. 'There was a diabolical downpour and the road was narrow. Others have been doing the same without anything being said. I broke off my holiday to help out these lads. They have no sponsorship, have provided their own spares and I'm getting nothing from this race.'

Eric de Clercq completed a hat- trick of stage wins for Belgium. He raced clear in the final mile of the 109 from Bradford, leaving Hendrik Redant, of Belgium and Thierry Claveyrolat, of France, to fight for second place.

Italy's Maurizio Fondriest retired during yesterday's Pennine leg. With tomorrow's World Cup race on his mind the series leader obviously felt he had done enough. He has a 43- point lead over the Belgian Johan Mueeuw as they tackle the 144-mile Cup race in Yorkshire, and needs all the energy he can muster.