1^ST (4) Tapio Laukkanen/Ilka Riipinen (Impreza WRC) 1.59.59.8

2^nd (3) Derek McGarrity/Dermot O'Gorman (Impreza WRC) 2.01.41.3

3^rd (6) Jari-Matti Latvala/Miika Antila (Focus WRC) 2.01.45.3

4^th (2) Jonny Milner/Nicky Beech (Corolla WRC) 2.02.17.4

5^th (5) Austin MacHale/Brian Murphy (Impreza WRC) 2.02.42.3

6^th (11) Kris Meeke/Dave Senior (Corsa) 2.04.43.0

7^th (10) Gwyndaf Evans/Claire Mole (MG ZR) 2.04.47.2

8^th (20) Ryan Champion/Cliff Simmons (Puma) 2.08.21.0

9^th (12) Maurice Gass/Andrew Cullen (Impreza WRC) 2.08.27.2

10^th (17) Dougi Hall/Steve Egglestone (Lancer) 2.08.30.7

11^th (15) Roy White/Greg Shinnors 9Lancer N) 2.08.36.8

12^th (19) Andrew Stewart/Fabian McShane (Lancer N) 2.08.37.1

Although rally leader Tapio Laukkanen is now aiming purely for the finish, there are still some interesting battles going on in the top 10, with Derek McGarrity getting ahead of Latvala for 2^nd place and Kris Meeke pushing past Gwyndaf Evans for Super 1600 superiority. There is a big dice as well for top group N honours, with Roy White getting caught out on the wrong tyres on the Barnes Gap and Butterlope stages, to allow Andrew Stewart to close right up. While Dickie Curran and Aaron MacHale are also going very hard and ready to pounce on the leaders at the slightest slip.

Tapio Laukkanen commented here at the last Gortin service and with one stage remaining "Everything is fine, we’re driving at 80 per cent basically". Derek McGarrity said "We picked intermediate tyres, not too bad, pushing reasonably hard". Maurice Gass has dropped right out of the world rally car battle at the front now, the Millview Fuels man saying "This has been one of my worst rallies, so many problems, now the heated screen in front of me has stopped working. It was pissing down in there and I had to take my belts off to wipe the screen in the stage".

Kris Meeke was a few seconds than Gwyndaf Evans through stages 13, 14 and 15, and that was despite catching and having to pass Gass’ Subaru at one point. Kris saying "We’re going very vary hard". Ryan Champion is 3^rd in Super 1600 now and said "I’ve nothing to go for, trying to stay out of trouble and not do what I did on the last day of the Manx"

In the Group N race Roy White admits to picking the wrong tyres, running on slicks when there was standing water on the roads. Dickie Curran seems to have really wakened up after a slow Friday run, Dickie fastest gpN through stage 13. Aaron MacHale was fastest gpN through 14. Andrew Stewart reckoned he was lucky to get out of a ditch unscathed in stage 15.

In the Peugeot 206 Super Cup Shaun Gallagher leads after stage 13 – 7s ahead of Gareth MacHale with Sebastian Ling 37 back and Spanish driver Joan Roca over a minute in arrears now.

In the Ford Ireland Focus Championship Colm Murphy still leads from Oliver Stanley. David Delaney 3^rd ---after stage 14.

More from last service. BRIAN AND LIZ PATTERSON www.rallynews.net