A final stage puncture cost Garry Jennings any chance of a podium finish on the Cavan Stages Rally after a day long battle with Desi Henry.

Less than two seconds separated the pair going into the ninth and final stage of the rally, but Jennings’ mishap handed third to Henry and allowed Enniskillen navigator Barry McNulty to claim fourth spot alongside Cathan McCourt.

Immersed

Josh Moffett claimed the overall win after a thrilling duel with Callum Devine, but behind the leading pair Jennings and Henry were immersed in their own contest for third right from the first stage.

Henry had the early advantage, opening up a six second lead at the end of the first loop of three stages.

He had increased that lead to ten seconds after the fifth stage, but Jennings took it all back on stage six when an overshoot and stall from Henry cost him valuable time, promoting Jennings to third.

Prior to the event Jennings had vowed not to take any unnecessary risks with the Donegal International Rally less than three weeks away, and he was quickly under pressure again from a hard charging Henry.

Punctured

He found himself behind by 1.7 seconds heading into the final stage, but any chance of snatching a podium position were ended a quarter of the way through the stage when he slipped a stone and punctured. Anxious not to damage the car he opted to stop and change the wheel on the stage, losing over five minutes and plummeting to 19th overall.

Barry McNulty was calling the notes for Cathan McCourt and they benefitted from Jennings’ time loss to claim fourth overall. The pair started slowly and were back in 14th spot after the opening stage, but had climbed to sixth by the end of the first loop of three stages. They gained another place on the penultimate stage before making further progress on the final test.

Ruairi and Martin McGarrity took the win in class 3, leading from the second stage in their Citroen DS3 R3. They were second best to Paul Cloke on the opener, but they moved in front on the next stage and were never headed, pulling clear of the chasing pack to claim a convincing victory.

Overall historic win

Michael McDaid was another Fermanagh class winner, taking the overall historic win with a start to finish victory in his Ford Escort RS1800.