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RALLY
NEWS NO.4 Service – Saturday
1.45
UNOFFICIAL LEADERBOARD AFTER STAGE 3
Sraduffy River
1st (4) Andrew Nesbitt/James O'Brien (Impreza
WRC) 14.19.9
2nd (1) Derek McGarrity/Dermot O'Gorman (Impreza
WRC) 14.28.2
3rd (2) Eugene Donnelly/Paul Kiely (Corolla
WRC) 14.32.4
4th (5) Eamonn Boland/Francis Regan (Impreza
WRC) 14.35.9
5th (8) Kevin Lynch/Gordon Noble (Impreza
WRC) 14.49.9
6th (6) Peadar Hurson/Glenn Patterson (Impreza
WRC) 14.50.2
7th (3) Austin MacHale/Brian Murphy (Focus
WRC) 14.51.9
8th (57) Garry Jennings/Rory Kennedy (Lancer
N) 14.53.1
9th (7) Tim McNulty/Eugene O'Donnell (Impreza
WRC) 14.54.0
10th (16) Sean Devine/James McKee (Impreza
WRC) 14.54.0
11th (58) Seamus Leonard/Gerry McVeigh
(Lancer N) 15.27.1
12th (21) Donagh Kelly/Adrian Deasy (Lancer
N) 15.59.6
Through stage 3, the tortuous Sraduffy River, Andrew
Nesbitt exerted full authority and set a time of 6m05.7s, his closest
challenger being Peadar Hurson on 6.12.05 and Derek McGarrity on
6.13.7. Eugene Donnelly was over 10s slower than Nesbitt.
In Group N Colm Murphy had a bit of an accident,
dropped over a minute and delayed Garry Jennings. Garry has actually
been given a very quick time on the official results, no doubt there
was some confusion and this will have to be checked out. Conor
McCloskey had a brilliant run through St Angelo, running at car 45,
drying roads, fastest Group N – could spring a surprise.
In one of the class battles Brian O’Mahony in the Puma
was 25s up on Andrew Bushe (Peugeot) on stage 2. Emma McKinstry had a
good run through the early stages and was lying just outside the top
20. Willie John Dolan clipped a chicane with his new Impreza N11,
minor damage, still going.
EASTER STAGES UNOFFICIAL L/BOARD AFTER STAGE 5
ROWANTREE HILL
1st (302) Glenn Allen/Damien Connolly
(Corolla WRC) 29.12.7
2nd (309) Dickie Curran/Gary (Bloke) Lyons
(Impreza WRC) 29.20.7
3rd (305) Raymond Johnson/Richard Bell (Impreza
WRC) 29.29.8
4th (313) Terry McGonigle/Sean Harris
(Lancer N) 29.35.5
5th (303) Denis Biggerstaff/Damien McCann (Impreza
WRc) 30.23.8
6th (315) Neil McCance/Sean Ferris (Lancer
N) 30.34.6
7th (308) David Armstrong/Fabian McShane (Impreza
WRC) 30.42.1
8th (317) Gary Cairns/Justin Coyle (Lancer
N) 30.44.3
9th (319) Eddie Quinn/Robbie Hamilton
(Lancer N) 31.01.9
10th (314) Stephen Moore/Stephen Griffiths (Impreza
N) 31.13.1
Raymond Johnson took the lead of the Easter Stages on
stage 3, by just .1 of a second. However, on stage 4 on a square left
square right over gravel Raymond spun the car backwards through 2
gateposts, no damage, but lost a bit of time. This let Glenn Allen
back out in front, Glenn had been having his own dramas, skidding his
Corolla WRC off the road on a tight bridge. He got away with it, with
no real damage. Meanwhile Dickie Curran was getting the hammer down
and set fastest time through stage 5. Dickie started the day on worn
tyres, but he fitted new rubber and as he gradually became more
accustomed to the Impreza WRC he found it a lot nicer to drive and the
times started to flow. David Armstrong was right up with the leading
crews after the first couple of stages, but his Impreza WRC has
developed gear selection problems. Craig Bennett’s Focus WRC stopped
with oil blowing through the turbo.
Martin Elliott has retired his Lancer after an
accident. John McGlaughlin looks like he has stopped his Group N
Lancer. Eoin McErlain retired his similar machine with a blown
engine. This has left Terry McGonigle a very clear leader in Group N
from Neil McCance, with Gary Cairns 3rd in the category.
Stephen Moore’s GpN Impreza has been slowed with a loose wheel bearing
causing brake pad knock off. Neil McCance slowed when his Lancer
started to vibrate, turned out to be a large clod of mud in a wheel.
Further stories include – Rodney Wallace slowed,
leaking oil from the sump of his GpN Lancer. Gary Rogers was in to the
top 10 but he slowed through stages 5 and 6, in his own words
“following the biggest accident ever that didn’t happen”. Also running
with the turbo anti lag turned off. Alistair Cochrane would appear to
be still leading the 2 wheel driver runners and is unofficially 11th
overall after stage 5, despite his Escort gear stick jumping out after
a big jump. Ronan Curley was ahead of Cochrane, but he seems to have
lost a bit of momentum, his total now 32.15.2. Kieran O’Neill in the
Kadett is getting into his stride as he becomes accustomed to a new co
driver in the shape of Andrew O’Donoghue, and Kieran is perhaps only a
few seconds behind Cochrane. Having said that, we have no times for
Kieran for stage 2, which was “interrupted”. More news later.
BRIAN & LIZ PATTERSON www.rallynews.net
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