Four points behind Galligan is youngster Barry Clark with a one point advantage over fourth placed Robert Swann while another of the front running 'Juniors' Steve Petch has hauled himself up to fifth place after a truly gritty performance on the
Jim Clark and like Galligan, Petch's score comes from three finishes out of four so far. Smith failed to finish last year's Manx when her gearbox broke, but like Stobart team-mate Clark has again suffered a number of problems so far this season. However with half the series behind them, they will be looking for a better half to come - it can't really get much worse!
Quality entry.
Once again, this event counts towards both the Kwik-Fit Pirelli British and Pirelli Irish Tarmac championships with the entry bolstered by a fast and furious paced influx from further across the water.
Higgins is top seed, but 'King' Kenny McKinstry heads the emerald invasion backed up by a whole queue of fast flyers including Derek McGarrity, Eugene Donnelly, Tim McNulty and Eamon Boland with of course, Austin MacHale eager to beat them all.
Adding a little extra spice to proceedings are a few drivers from even further afield with Belgian drivers Phil Nijs and C Guichot De Fortis plus Dutch driver Rob Heldoorn coming over to take on the best of the Brits and the Irish.
This event also counts towards the Armajaro British Historic Rally Championship and as such the Conister Trust Manx Historic Rally has attracted over 50 entries with Porsches and Escorts likely to fuel nostalgia, while the Star Services Manx Trophy Rally is designed to appeal to the clubman with over 50 cars and crews making the trip to the motor sports capital of the UK.
Let's not forget the Land Rover Challenge either. This lot of hooligans is worth the visit on their own. Land Rovers were never designed for rallying on tarmac roads but that doesn't stop them trying!
