Donegal and Beyond

It appears the rivalry between Monaghan and Donegal isn't just confined to football as the world of rallying was treated to a thrilling fight between Declan Boyle and Sam Moffett. The pair were the only real challengers for the win all weekend and in the end it went to Letterkenny's Declan and Brian Boyle. Other drivers Donagh Kelly and Darren Gass unfortunately didn't make it to the end.

Donegal International Winners Declan and Brian Boyle

My pre-event tip to win Gary Jennings wasn't able to match the pace of the leaders but managed to take a very respectable 3rd place while Derek McGarrity had to settle for 4th but the rivalry between Moffett and Boyle over the wekend made the action very exciting. The Monaghan man took the lead on a number of occasions and certainly didn't make it easy for the Boyles.  With the intense competition between all competitors we witnesses something on Sunday that would seem completely alien in many other sports. Declan Boyle's car refused to start at the entry to Atlantic Drive and it looked like his bid to win his first Donegal International could be over. But in an act of compassion his competitors came to his aid and managed to restart the car. There's something about this sport that puts it above any other in my eyes and things like this that make it so.

Runners Up Sam Moffett and James O'Reilly

Looking ahead to the rest of the championship you have to favour Declan and Brian Boyle to bring the Irish Tarmac Championship back to Donegal again this year. The Subaru crew have a healthy lead in the championship now and surely a good result at the Ulster Rally will make it a comfortable trip to the Cork 20 later in the year.

An interesting announcement was made yesterday that could have an impact on Irish Rallying as a whole. The British Rally Championship will not go ahead in 2015 prompting the question where will the regular competitors of the BRC go. Could this be good news for the likes of the Irish Tarmac Championship. The ITC is an incredibly challenging and popular championship and has a rich history of high profile competitors entering it. Could this one year absence for the BRC result in certain teams or even manufacturers heading for the Emerald Isle? It will be certainly be interesting to see.