Renshaw’s role this season has also seen him have to step up in the absence of his team leader, most notably after Cavendish abandoned the Tour de France and suffered after a crash at the Tour of Britain.

Renshaw says any decision as to the team’s designated sprinter has to be made well in advance of the finale of a stage, as was the case in his win on stage two of the Tour of Britain, when Cavendish advised his team-mates of his poor condition early in the day.

Having crashed on the previous stage, the Manxman stepped down and the team prepared to tee-up Renshaw in a sprint or Michal Kwiatkowski and Niki Terpstra if a late break succeeded.

In the end, Renshaw sprinted to success with Kwiatkowski playing the perfect foil by finding his team-mate’s wheel and then sitting up to slow the advances of his rivals.

And Renshaw is pleased to have been able to repay the team’s efforts.

“I came to the team to help Mark Cavendish, not to win races for myself,” he said. “Though I’ve had opportunities unfortunately it’s taken a long time to win a race for myself!

“Throughout the season we have seen things not exactly swing the team’s way, like Cav crashing in the Tour. I’m happy to get the win. It’s nice to repay the team with a victory, for all the help they’ve given me and all the time they have helped me this year.”