A RALLY team from Stourbridge celebrated on the podium of a national championship last Sunday after coming third in the Land Rover Defender Challenge.

Brothers Damien and Simon Taft, from Enville, went into the final rally of the seven event series in Dumfries battling for third place in the standings.

And despite being pushed to the wire, the team, who are based at Prestwood Garage on Bridgnorth Road, Wollaston, held on to make the podium in their first ever competitive championship. The duo now have hopes of competing at the gruelling Dakar Rally in 2016.

Driver Damien Taft said: “I’ve come into this challenge completely fresh with no prior experience whatsoever, and it has been a massive learning curve for both Simon and I. Simon has never navigated before and I have never rallied before.

“We have pushed ourselves and sometimes a bit too far but we have improved with every round. It’s been very enjoyable and has made us even more determined to come back next year and aim for a win. After that it will be Dakar.”

2014 was the inaugural year of the Defender Challenge by Bowler race series, which featured seven rounds, held across the UK. The series has been created to offer competitors a clear pathway to further international rally raid competition such as the Africa Race and Dakar Rally. Three teams from the Defender Challenge, including Team Taft, are currently preparing to compete at Dakar in 2016.