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RALLY NEWS NO.4 Service/Saturday 3.30
UNOFFICIAL LEADERBOARD AFTER STAGE 5 Ballintempo
1st (2) Sean Devine/Damien Duffin (Impreza WRC) 22.27
2nd (3) Stephen Moore/Tony McHugh (Focus WRC) 22.33
3rd (12) Howard Clarke/Jason Harron (Lancer N) 22.48
4th (14) Richard Cathcart/Paul McLoughlin (Impreza N) 23.00
5th (6) Garry Jennings/Rory Kennedy (Lancer N) 23.14
6th (17) Seamus Devine/Terry McGonigle (Impreza WRC) 23.25
7th (11) Raymond Mason/Peter Martin (Lancer N) 23.27
8th (5) Richard Hogg/Mark Hanna (Octavia) 23.34
9th (15) Kevin O'Kane/Martin Brady (Impreza WRC) 23.35
10th (7) Niall McShea/Marshall Clarke (Escort) 23.43
Had there been a judging panel holding up score cards for style and content at the big jump over the flying finish of stage 5, Ballintempo, almost certainly they would have scored Niall McShea in his blue Mk2 Escort top points. It really was a fairly dramatic place and Sean Devine was close to McShea in the airborne stakes. Sean’s stage time was a full 6s up on Stephen Moore. When bogey times were taken into account on stage 2, it actually made Sean and Stephen Moore equal at service. The race between these two looks fairly frenetic. Stephen Moore is going to have to pull something special out of the bag over the second half of the rally if he wants to keep his NI rally championship hopes alive.
When Devine left stage 5 to go the short distance through the forest into the Carrigans stage his Subaru reversing lights were on which sometimes indicates a problem in those Impreza WRC gearboxes. Stephen Moore reported all well but looked fairly shaken when he discovered that Devine had been 6s faster. Richard Hogg had a good run, his Octavia back on full song. Richard said that his earlier misfire troubles were down to spark plugs.
Garry Jennings finished the stage with sticks and bits of earth poking out from the front of his Lancer which would indicate that at some point his Mitsubishi had been in the bushes and trying very hard. Fastest group N however was once again Howard Clarke with a time of 4.34. Richard Cathcart did 4.36 and Garry 4.37. Cathcart remarked that he had picked a different type of tyre and he reckoned it wasn’t so good under braking. Howard Clarke said “We’re getting a bit of confidence built up, I Just have to keep her steady”. Raymond Mason was just a couple of seconds down on the other top GpN drivers but still said he run was “spot on”. Seamus Devine felt he had a few problems with his Impreza gearbox but still had a decent time.
Ian Cochrane the yellow GpN Lancer had a great throw over that crest jump at the end of stage 5, and set a decent time also, 4.45, just outside the scope of the leaders. Niall McShea told us that he is really getting into the way of the Mk2 Escort, really enjoying it. Looking back slightly to the times after stage 4, Niall was 2s up on Frank Kelly at that point and 14 up on Seamus O’Connell. Adrian Hetherington set some fantastic times though in his Mk2 Escort and he was ahead of Niall by 9s.
Craig Bennett’s Metro 6R4 ground to a halt at the end of stage 5, Craig said that there seemed to be a gearbox problem. Some further times in from stage 4 show Trevor Elliott leading class 6 in his Escort from Shane Cullen (Escort). Dermot O’Hagan was leading cl.3 in his Corsa from the Starlet of Shane McGirr.
In the Fiesta Sporting Trophy Alastair Fisher hung on to his lead despite a stage 5 puncture where he dropped 4s to Jonny Greer but still leads Jonny by 12s. Jonny said at stage finish that he concentrated on keeping everything clean and tidy and it certainly paid off with fastest Fiesta time through the stage. Conor Harvey had a good run but was still 5s down on Greer.
LATE NEWS: Garry Jennings has been seen driving into Garrison after stage 6 so we can assume he is out of the rally.
In Wexford Eamonn Boland’s lead over Gareth MacHale has been cut to 9s after stage 4 with McGrath plus 44.
More news later. BRIAN & LIZ PATTRERSON www.rallynews.net |
