Poole driver Marcus Dodd's hopes of lifting another MSA National Gravel Rally Championship title are over for another season.  The Flitewise.com backed driver was jointly leading the Park Systems Rally in South West Scotland until an untimely engine failure left the Hyundai Accent WRC stranded at the side of the road.Pirelli Tyres and Sunseeker Powerboats supported Dodd had a simple task prior to the event.  The recent winner of the Swansea Bay Rally knew that he and Hove based co-driver Andrew Bargery had to win in Scotland in order to remain in the hunt for title honours.  The Newton Stewart based event offered 50 miles of testing stages in classic forests such as Glentrool, where punctures traditionally decided who succeeded and who failed on the rally.Dry conditions would greet the crews on Saturday morning, and the opening 19 mile stage would provide a stern test.  Series rival Barry Johnson was hit by punctures early on, dropping two minutes.  Norwegian ace Andreas Mikkelsen slipped off the road and retired, and Dodd stopped the clocks with fastest time.  Joining him on that time to the tenth of a second was championship rival Craig Middleton, who also put in a spirited first stage performance in his similar Hyundai Accent WRC.Moving to the second stage of the rally, Dodd was keen to push on to try and eek out an advantage over Middleton.  Sadly, the HPM Motorsport run Hyundai would pull off from the stage at the second junction, with an engine problem.  Dodd had no option but to retire from the rally, losing any remaining chance of taking the title in the process.  For Marcus, it was a disappointing end to a season where he had consistently shown himself to be one of the championship's fastest drivers:'I'm very disappointed to retire this way' said Marcus at the finish.  'Unfortunately my regular car was damaged in an accident on the recent Woodpecker Rally, so I was using my father's regular car instead.  Sadly, the engine cried enough on the second stage.  I'm particularly disappointed as we'd been on a steady pace all the way through the opening stage, and our stage time was very positive.  This year has been something of a development year, as we've introduced some major developments to the Hyundai.  As with any development project, there will always be teething troubles, but the more we learn the better prepared we are for next year.  Overall the pace of the car has been fantastic this year, as we have consistently set fastest times on virtually every rally we have contested.  As such, I'm confident that whatever we do next year, we can be at the sharp end of the results for certain'.Whilst Marcus was left to rue his misfortune, his father Harry Dodd had an enjoyable day in his loaned Hyundai Accent WRC.  With fellow HPM Motorsport driver Peter Egerton away from Scotland, Dodd senior loaned Peter's car for the rally, and quickly got to grips with the new machine.  Harry and his stand in co-driver Andy Street avoided the rocks to finish 15th overall.  Dorset Police Rally Team crew Shaun Cronin and Mark Williams were also contesting the rally.  Driving the HPM Motorsport run Subaru Impreza N8, the pair notched up 19th place overall in their Road Angel and Petards backed car.