The Kesh man and co-driver Phil Hall battled their way through the field, from eighth place after stage one to win by over 30 seconds in the end.

 

For the 26 year-old, to find himself back on the podium and particularly at World Championship level is something he has dreamed about for a long time, but it’s something he felt might never happen after a heavy crash at Rally Sweden last year.

 

“It was pretty cool to stand on a World Championship podium,” he beamed.

 

“It’s been a while but it felt nice to do it and it’s something I wanted to tick off the list!

 

“I didn’t want my rally career to end on a disappointing note, so it’s nice to kick-start it again and to achieve a win is amazing. 

 

“After the crash in Sweden I didn’t know if I was going to get the chance to get back in the WRC again or if I was going to be able to do it after a crash like that. 

 

“But once you get back in the swing of things, you don’t really think about it.

 

“I was probably a little bit cautious on some of the faster bits but towards the end of the rally I was getting better. I just need to try to improve now. 

 

“It’s going to be a tough season, it’s a very tough competition this year, so it’s good to get a win. We’ve made a good start and that’s the main thing.”