Rally News No.3 Service In Sunday 12.45pm

Unofficial Leaderboard After Stage Four

1^st (3) Jim Harrison/Harvey Bell (Impreza WRC) 41.10

2^nd (7) Noel Redmond/Diarmuid Falvey (Impreza WRC) 41.17

3^rd (6) Liam McCarthy/Kieran Murphy (Impreza WRC) 41.21

4^th (9) Sean Gallagher/Enda Sherry (Impreza WRC) 41.51

5^th (2) Patrick Elliott/David Moynihan (Impreza WRC) 42.00

6^th (8) Denis Cronin/Helen O’Sullivan (Impreza WRC) 42.07

7^th (5) Cathal Arthurs/Jakes Kelly (Octavia WRC) 42.31

8^th (16) James O’Sullivan/Rebecca Walsh (Lancer N) 42.43

9^th (17) Alan Ring/Greg Shinnors (Impreza N) 42.54

10^th (1) Niall Maguire/Paul McLaughlin (Impreza WRC) 42.57

11^th (18) Barry Coleman/Don Montgomery (Impreza WRC) 43.38

12^th (158) Tadgh Lineham/John Kearney (Impreza N) 43.49

Rally leader Jim Harrison extended his lead over stage three when he went five seconds quicker than Liam McCarthy and eleven seconds quicker than second placed Noel Redmond but Redmond once again turned the tide on the second run over Mount Kid when he was fastest again taking seven seconds back from Harrison. Jim Harrison was grim faced as he tried to get into service, the Englishman on the phone to Kenny McKinstry discussing serious gearbox problems, co driver Harvey Bell saying "the clutch is on its way out – it is slipping like hell", so hopefully the McKinstry engineers can sort it out. Noel Redmond is going really well in second but he is finding his Impreza WRC in gearbox woes as well, the car jumping out of gear on a more and more regular basis. Liam McCarthy is having a trouble free run in his Impreza, the only change he plans to make here at second service is to put a few more cuts into his back tyres to try and disperse standing water.

Patrick Elliott had another frustrating run over stages three and four, his Impreza still having niggling gearbox and anti-lag problems, but the Dunlop championship challenger is hopeful that a change of ECU in service will solve his problems. Niall Maguire is driving a very conservative rally at the bottom end of the top ten as he tries to secure a third Dunlop National Championship, the Monaghan man quietly admitting that it is very difficult to drive at a slower pace. Sean Gallagher is another one having a trouble free run but admitted to a few hairy moments in stage four and thinks he might back off a little bit. Kevin Barrett voiced a lot of drivers opinions when he said "it is so slippy, we are just not taking any major chances".

Alan Ring dropped a few seconds to James O’Sullivan in the GpN race, the 023 Tiles man reckoned he lost a few seconds in stage four when he came across a retiring Bob Fowden. Fowden’s GpA Impreza had blown its turbo and James O’Sullivan could hardly see in the cloud of smoke. In the 023 Tiles championship, if things stay as they are Liam McCarthy would win by one point from Alan Ring but it is still a long way to go today.

Johnny O’Sullivan is still suffering a bad misfire in his Escort WRC to the extent that Barry Coleman caught him in SS4, but otherwise Coleman is having a trouble free run. Ger O’Donovan is still setting good times despite a badly slipping clutch and is just off the leaderboard on a total of 43.50, one second behind Tadgh Lineham. Enda Keenan is still the leading 2wd from Wesley Patterson who is eight seconds down in his Mk2, but Thomas O’Rourke is flying once again in his class 3 Astra and is only a couple of seconds behind. More News Later Michael Patterson & Zoe Todd (with thanks to Micro-Cam for the tea).