O’Brien brothers push WRC star all the way in Cork

MOUNTFIELD’S O’Brien brothers, Patrick and Stephen pushed Ford World Rally Championship driver, Craig Breen all the way during Sunday’s Jim Walsh Cork Forest Rally, which was a counting round of the Irish Forestry Rally Championship.

The Tyrone duo were the only crew to get within touching distance of Breen and co-driver John Boden, who were driving Breen’s father, Ray’s WRC Ford Focus. Behind the wheel of their Skoda Fabia R5, they finished 22.6 seconds behind their highly rated foe to claim second place and the class five win from Jordan and Paul Hone who were a further 31.3 seconds adrift.

Dromore brothers Cathan and Conor McCourt were embroiled in an entertaining battle for fourth, with the younger sibling, Cathan, partnered by Liam Moynihan, coming out on top on this occasion by just over 11 seconds in their Hyundai i20 R5 to claim third place in class five.

Conor McCourt, who had Caolan McKenna on the notes in their Fabia R5, finished 10.5 seconds ahead of sixth placed Omagh driver Gareth Mimnagh and co-driver Barry McCarney in their R5 Ford Fiesta.

Killyclogher’s Niall McCullagh and co-driver Martin Brady were next home in another R5 Fiesta in seventh overall, while Strabane’s Martin Cairns, who had Dunamanagh’s Peter Ward on the notes, rounded out the top 10 in a similar machine.

Donaghmore’s Adrian Hetherington and co-driver Gary Nolan won the two wheel drive and class 14 battles with David Condell and Paul Kelly by just over 13 seconds, with Fivemiletown’s Shane McGirr and Ballygawley’s Denver Rafferty 13th overall and third in the two-wheel-drive clash in their Toyota Starlet.

McGirr and Rafferty also won class 13 fromDromore’s Owen McMackin and co-driver Declan Casey, who were 16th, while Strabane’s Ryan Caldwell and Mark McGeehan claimed 20th and second in class two behind Brendan Cumiskey and Martin Connelly in their R2T Ford Fiesta.

And Omagh’s Brian Little was 39th overall alongside co-driver David McSorley in their G3 Ford Escort, winning class 12 from Sean William Benskin by almost one minute and 20 seconds in the process.

Elsewhere, two members of Drumquin’s Dickson family were in action at the Grampian Rally in Banchory, Scotland at the weekend.

Ashley and Des Sherlock had a bad start to the day, losing a minute and a half with a spin on SS1. They battled through the day suffering with getting caught in the dust of previous cars but managed to get 22nd overall.

Stephen and Dean O’Sullivan had a day of learning with it being Stephen’s first rally from last September and his first in the R5. They had a few problems throughout the day with a throttle position sensor but ended up 16th overall.