Three days of tough racing over wet, dirty northern roads may have taken a heavy toll on some of the world's best rally cars but it certainly did not dampen the enthusiasm of the drivers for the event, which was held in Ireland for the first time.

World Champion and current championship pacesetter Sebastien Loeb says he would be delighted to compete again in Ireland, praising the event despite the tough driving conditions.

"It was a nice rally and its always a nice atmosphere here," Loeb said. "I have come here three times now to compete in rallies and won, so I would like to come again."

Mark Higgins, who hails from the Isle of Man, was fully supportive of bringing the rally to Ireland, saying it was long overdue.

"Having a World Championship rally in Ireland is something I think everybody's really wanted, and to actually pull it together is fantastic," he said. "The atmosphere's been absolutely brilliant and the stages have been well run. To be honest, I thought the traffic was going to be a nightmare but they've organised that really, really well, we've had no problems at all."

The drivers were particularly complimentary about the organisation and the spectators. Many of them had reason to be grateful to onlookers who pulled their cars out of ditches and fields after crashes.

The crowd literally helped Jari Matti Latvala to his first podium finish!

"The car understeered and I tried to use the handbrake to spin the car but it went straight over a bank and into a field. We were absolutely stuck, the car would not move and we thought our rally was over," Latvala related. "Then a whole lot of spectators arrived, pushed the car back over the bank onto the road and off we went!"

Gareth McHale, gaining his second WRC points finish was delighted with his performance on his home rally: "It was such a great rally, so well run and the volume of spectators at each stages was out of this world. To get a WRC point at home is just brilliant. Ireland really proved that we can stage an event such as this."

The PWRC category winner, Fermanagh's Niall McShea, was equally complimentary. "The road surface was so greasy, each stage was unpredictable but so enjoyable. I loved the challenge. It was a brilliant rally," he said.

"I spoke with other competitors and they all said they loved it. It's been brilliantly run and is definitely deserving of a place in '09," McShea declared.