London based Limerick man Ollie O’Donovan and his business partner John Murphy pulled out all the stops last weekend to raise support to enable Niall McShea to complete his GpN WRC title bid in Australia. Due to earlier budget problems Fermanagh man Niall was having to call off his Rally Australia effort. O’Donovan pulled in the support of many of the top Irish drivers and preparation experts, who, mostly without hesitation, donated £1000 apiece to make up a total of £20,000. Niall will put ‘supported by Irish Rally Drivers’ on his Subaru in Australia.

James O’Sullivan came close to winning his own 023 Tiles Southern 4 Championship last weekend on the Fastnet Rally where he won GpN. The Bandon man will be in action again on the 14th November Banna Beach based Kerry Single Stage event, where he will be fighting for the Top Part West Coast Championship, enjoying as he does a 1 point lead over Willie Fannin. Liam McCarthy took the 023 Tiles title thanks to his 2nd place on the Fastnet.

Further to our piece last week about Brendan Crealey moving up to a WRC car for next year’s ANCRO Championship, it is John Papadimitriou’s ’01 Focus WRC that the Craigavon man has negotiated for.

Following his splendid Mitsubishi Challenge win on the Bulldog Rally, Oldcastle’s Rory Galligan has now turned his attention to the next round of his fledgling Irish Peugeot 205 Challenge, which travels to the 4th December Grizedale Stages. Niall O’Connell is the current points leader.
Tom Spence is tipped to be acquiring the GpN Lancer that Brendan Crealey drove this year as his Mitsubishi Evo Challenge prize and with which he won GpN again on the ANCRO series.
The prizegiving for the McCauley Trailers Forestry Championship will take place in the Middleton Hotel on Saturday 13th November.

Ballymena’s Nigel Hicklin, a front runner over the past two seasons in his Subaru, is planning to change to a Skoda WRC for next season.

Brian Patterson