At the end of stage 5 of the Tour de France, the Irishman wore the green jersey after achieving a long-held dream over the past 31 years.

Sam Bennett finished third in Prevas, but he led Peter Sagan by nine points and became the first overall leader since Sean Kelly.

Kelly became the last Irishman to lead in the Tour after wearing the green jersey to Paris in 1989 and finishing ninth overall.

"What can I say, it's great to see Sam in the green jersey and even better that he's from the same town in Ireland as me," Kelly, who like Bennett is from Carrick-on-Suir, told Cycling News late Wednesday night.

"Winning the green jersey in his first Tour de France is a bit of a belated achievement. He wasn't sent to the Tour last year and struggled a bit in Beulah.

All Bennett lacks at this point is his first stage win. Bennett has come close to winning several times, but Kelly believes that he must focus on getting the rider he has groomed to win at this point rather than trying to break Peter Sagan's almost "vise" grip on the green jersey.

"He has to get the stage win. He is one of the fastest riders here, along with Caleb Yuan. But if he gets a stage win, he will get the green jersey."

Bennett, of course, began his career at Unpost, where Kelly was a member, before moving to NetApp in 2014. Kelly fondly recalls how passionate and talented Bennett was from an early age, and how he matured as a rider as he moved up the ranks. [It was when he was very young, 13 or so, before he started racing in Ireland. He was racing with his son, who was the same age, in a caravan park by the seaside. That was before he joined a local club and started racing," the Eurosport commentator told Cycling News.

"When he first returned to Ireland, he always dominated the races. But it is difficult to see how far a rider will develop. Because sometimes they can be really good in their junior years, but when they step up they don't perform at the same level. But when Sam moved up to the under-23 level, he showed that he had the fast sprints. We brought him onto the Unpost team and he has grown a lot. He won a stage at the Tour of Britain, which was a bit of a leap forward."

The battle for the green jersey has only just begun, and the difference at this point is negligible. Sagan is notorious for his consistency and ability to chase down points on stages that are not suitable for sprinters. But Kelly believes Bennett can close the gap and chase the three-time world champion all the way to Paris.

"He will definitely come out on top. There will definitely be more opposition to Sagan this year. The race has only just begun, but Bennett is consistent. He has a chance to challenge for the green jersey all the way to Paris."