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MONTPELLIER, France -- Stage 6 of the 100th Tour de France was a textbook demonstration of teamwork. Like playing pass the parcel, an Australian deliberately handed over the race lead to a South African teammate and friend, so he could be the first rider from that country to wear the famed yellow jersey. And the German, Andre Greipel, who won the stage with a fierce finishing sprint, owed a debt of gratitude to teammates who plied him with drinks all afternoon, ferrying bottles back and forth from cars at the back of the race, so he didnt melt in the scorching sun. "Room service," the big German said light-heartedly. As the new leader of cyclings showcase race, Daryl Impey can look forward to some first-class treatment, too. Being the first South African to wear the yellow jersey "will definitely change my life," Impey said. Rugby, cricket and, for the majority black population, football, are the big sports for South Africans. Impey can shop in the malls of Johannesburg, where he trains and lives, without being recognized, said his wife, Alexandra. But that was before his buddy on the Orica GreenEdge team, Simon Gerrans, passed him the race lead at the Tour. "Wearing the yellow jersey now is definitely going to change things for cycling, put it on the map in South Africa," said Impey. "Hopefully people will start recognizing me, maybe." Gerrans knows the feeling. To wear canary yellow at the Tour is to be king for a day -- or more depending on how long the rider keeps the lead. Gerrans had it for two unforgettable days. Fans clapped and cheered when they saw him. Reporters chased him. A particularly boisterous crowd of Aussie fans played air guitar for him. The jersey also carries extra responsibilities: news conferences, podium ceremonies and other distractions can eat into rest and recovery -- so important for riders to survive the three-week trek over 3,404 kilometres (2,115 miles). Injuries from crashes have already culled seven of the 198 riders who started in Corsica on June 29. Impey worked for Gerrans earlier at the Tour, helping him win Stage 3 and riding hard in the time trial Orica won as a team in Stage 4. Gerrans figured it was time for some pay-back. So on Thursday he rode in five seconds behind Impey in Montpellier. That was enough for the race lead to pass from one to the other, because they started the day with the exact same overall time, with Gerrans in first place and Impey second. "Daryl was a huge part of me getting the jersey so I thought it was a nice gesture to be able to pass it on to him now. Hopefully for a few days," Gerrans said. "To have the yellow jersey, it just really changes your life as a cyclist." "Ill have a bit more time to myself now and pass all that extra work on to Daryl," Gerrans added. "I dont count it as losing the jersey. I count it as passing it onto a mate. It was the plan before the stage and we were able to execute it perfectly." Impeys father was a pro cyclist in South Africa, said his wife, Alexandra. She said Impey also used to train with Burry Stander, a two-time Olympic mountain biker killed Jan. 3 when he was hit by a minibus taxi while biking with his wife. Stander was the second leading cyclist to be killed in a road accident in South Africa in recent years. Carla Swart died in January 2011 when she was hit by a truck while training. Describing roads around Johannesburg as "pretty scary," Alexandra Impey said: "I feel more relaxed when hes training here in Europe." Greipels sprint-finish victory capped a hard day of riding for the pack, across 176.5-kilometres (110 miles) of flat, sun-kissed terrain from Aix-en-Provence. Anxious that the regions famous wind, the mistral, might blow hard and split up the race, teams cranked up the pace, reeling in a breakaway rider and motoring at high speed to make sure they wouldnt get left behind. This in heat that turned tarmac sticky, with temperatures in the thirties (above 90 Fahrenheit). Bottles flew from the peloton as riders emptied them and tossed them aside. At the finish, French rider Thibaut Pinot immediately pulled up at a drinks station, pouring a whole bottle of water over his head and downing another in huge gulps. "We rode strong all day in poor conditions," said Mark Cavendish, who won Stage 5 in a sprint but crashed late in Stage 6 and expended too much energy getting back into the race to challenge Greipel in the final dash. Water-carrying is the job of so-called "domestiques," racers who ride in support of leaders going either for overall victory or stage wins. "The yellow jersey doesnt get bottles, as a general rule," said Matt White, a director on Impeys team. While leaders concentrate on staying up front, their support riders drop back to team cars behind the peloton to pick up drinks. "Its a dangerous place to be, getting water bottles at 60 kilometres per hour (37 miles per hour) and putting them in your pockets," said White. So leaders dont do it. Domestiques stuff bottles into pockets and inside their shirts. ""You look like an idiot, but its the easiest way to carry them," said one of Greipels water carriers, Australian Adam Hansen. Then they race back to distribute the drinks to teammates. "When youve got to go all the way back and all the way forward, its hard work," said Hansen. So Greipel doesnt do it, to keep him fresh for finishing sprints where he excels. His stage win Thursday was his fifth at the Tour. Greipel said he downed four to five litres (8 to 10 pints) of liquid -- about 10 bottles -- as he rode. 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NEW YORK -- Terry Collins sat in the Citi Field interview room and answered the first question after the New York Mets latest embarrassing defeat, a 9-0 wipeout against Arizona on Thursday that dropped them back to .500 for the first time since April.The manager spoke for 3 minutes, 27 seconds, his voice rising with emotion, his hands gesturing, tapping his chest and the table in front of him during a brutal assessment of his players desire and professionalism.Starting tomorrow were going to get after it here and those who dont want to get after it, I will find somebody else who does, he said, because in Las Vegas theres a whole clubhouse filled with guys who want to sit in this room and Ill find them. Thats all I got to say.Following that threat to call up players from the minor leagues, Collins arose, walked back down the corridor to his clubhouse and held a team meeting that lasted about 20 minutes.The last-place Diamondbacks rolled to a three-game sweep, rattling Noah Syndergaard with four more stolen bases and breaking open the game in a six-run sixth inning against Jon Niese that included Chris Owings bases-loaded triple.Fourteen of New Yorks last 15 batters made out, and the Mets -- missing injured Yoenis Cespedes, Lucas Duda, David Wright and Jose Reyes -- managed five runs and 17 hits in the series. They have the lowest batting average in the major leagues at .236 and were shut out for the ninth time.I dont care whos not here. There are no excuses here, Collins said with intensity. These are major league baseball players. I dont care where they came from. I dont care how they got here. The names on their back and on the front of their uniform say theyre a major league baseball player. It starts with them.New York, which began the day 2 1/2 games back for the NLs second wild card, dropped to 10-16 since the All-Star break. As 57-57, the Mets are down to .500 for the first time since a 7-7 mark.You owe a responsibility to the fans, our fan base, the organization and to yourself to respect for this game to come out and grind it out, whether its hot or whether its freezing cold, and thats where its got to start, Collins said.Yes, some guys are having a bad time. You cannot say woe is me at this level. You cannot do it. Everybodys too good here. Nobody feels sorry for you, `cause everybodys been humbled and those who get out of it stay here a long time. Those who dont you keep looking up and they keep getting a little time here and a little time there but they dont stay. I wwant the ones who can stay, he said.ddddddddddddPlayers understand the Mets, having raised fan expectations after reaching the World Series last year, expect the team to reach the postseason once again.Obviously he feels that pressure on himself from the outside in terms of us going out there to perform and being able to be victorious in any situation possible, outfielder Curtis Granderson said, so of course hes going to have some situations where hes not going to be as happy as you would expect him to be and after a loss.Collins singled out second baseman Neil Walker for his hustle and attitude.Its about keeping positive, keeping the blinders on moving forward on a daily basis with energy and playing hard, Walker said of Collins message.Syndergaard (9-7) swiped an arm in the air after right fielder Jay Bruce failed to catch Gosewischs opposite-field triple down the line, which gave the Diamondbacks a 2--0 lead, then threw up his arms in frustration when Arizona pitcher Braden Shipley (2-1) singled up the middle through a drawn-in infield for his first big league RBI.Syndergaard allowed three runs and eight hits -- including three doubles and a triple -- and is 0-4 in his last six starts. He described the mood of the team as optimistic, kind of down right now, plagued by injury.Arizona stole 13 bases in the series, the most in a three-game series against the Mets. Runners have swiped 36 bases in 40 tries against Syndergaard this year and are 51 for 56 against him in his career, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The Mets have allowed a big league-high 102 steals, including 20 off rookie Steven Matz, who is second behind Syndergaard.Its real easy for the baserunners to predict when Im going to home and when Im going to able to pick off. Its really mechanical, Syndergaard said.Fans booed the sloppy Mets, who allowed Arizona to steal bases without throws and also had an error, wild pitch and run-scoring passed ball.Theres got to be a passion to come and play, Collins said. Theres got to be a sense of this is what I do for a living, the people who pay me to play are going to see my best effort.TRAINERS ROOMMets: 3B Jose Reyes (oblique) was to start a rehab assignment with Class A Brooklyn on Thursday.UP NEXTMets: Logan Verrett (3-7), 0-1 in five starts since the All-Star break, is to start Fridays series opener against San Diego and Paul Clemens (1-2). ' ' '