Manus Kelly and Donal Barrett edge to win in Donegal International Rally

An absorbing and pulsating Joule Donegal International Rally in Letterkenny ended in dramatic fashion when locals Manus Kelly and Donal Barrett (Subaru WRC) edged out the Cork/Kerry combination of Keith Cronin/Mikie Galvin (Citroen DS3 R5) by a mere half a second. 

Monaghan’s Sam Moffett and his Cork co-driver Karl Atkinson (Fiesta R5) were 37.9 seconds further behind in third.

On Saturday’s penultimate leg the frenetic battle between overnight leader Declan Boyle (Ford Fiesta) and fellow Donegal driver Donagh Kelly (Ford Focus) continued through the days opening four stages. With three fastest times Kelly trimmed the deficit to 4.3 seconds. Meanwhile, Manus Kelly (Subaru WRC) had an off road excursion on the S.S. 8, he lost well over a minute and slipped down to eighth position. Alastair Fisher (Fiesta R5) lost time with suspension damage on S.S. 7 and a puncture early in S.S. 10. Elsewhere, Keith Cronin, who clattered a chicane on Knockalla made up some time to occupy sixth.