BROMSGROVE’S Nathan Crewe and co-driver John Connor took their first ever BTRDA 1400 Series win after nearly seven years of trying.

The Cottrill Transport team had entered the Welshpool based event for fun, after securing the Pirelli National Two Wheel Drive Gravel Rally Championship on the Swansea Bay Rally in July.

Despite trailing by four seconds in the morning, the Silkolene Oils-backed pair were able to increase their pace over the rougher afternoon stages, clawing back the deficit and overtaking the leader.

Two punctures failed to deter the MGZR pair, continuing to post fast times against much larger engined machinery.

The last stage was a tricky blast around Mad Mick’s Wood Yard, a stage based around one of the event sponsors’ business premises.

The stage offered plenty of opportunities to lose the rally, but Crewe and Connor managed to keep it together and claim victory by over 90 seconds.

The pair return to the National Championship on October 18, where they will contest the Bulldog Rally based in Shrewsbury.