Barrable hangs on in tough Sligo battle

SWORDS driver Robert Barrable (Skoda Fabia S2000)held off the spirited challenge of Midleton’s Daragh O’Riordan (Subaru WRC) to take an 11 second victory in the Sligo Park Hotel Rally, round six of the Dunlop National Rally Championship.

The duo battled hard and although Barrable had a significant lead entering the final stage, O’Riordan’s dominance through the final stage of the loop of three stages ensured the contest went down to the wire. Maynooth’s, Kevin Barrett (Subaru) was third.

On the opening 17km stage Barrable was two seconds quicker than O’Riordan, who was suffering from flu, both commenting on the slippery nature of the test around Geevagh.