There was heartbreak for Waterford’s Craig Breen as he crashed out spectacularly on the final day of the final WRS Rally of the year in Australia.

The Citroen driver was scrapping with Hyundai driver Hayden Paddon for fourth spot  when he clipped a bank and rolled out of the event.

Breen was distraught afterwards and explained that the root cause what that he was pushing too hard to try and stave off Paddon in the difficult wet conditions.

"Unfortunately we got caught out on the long Bucca stage, near the start," Breen said. "The rain was starting to come down, and Hayden was closing in. He had a bit of a better starting position three minutes up the road and the showers were getting heavier and heavier, so we knew we had to push to keep the fourth place.

"Unfortunately I made little mistake on a right-hander over a crest, a bit too fast, and clipped the rear of the car and rolled over a few times.

"It's not the best way to end the year."

Breen may just have lost out on a podium position as Paddon ended up finishing third after Jari-Matti Latvala crashed out of the final stage.

Ireland’s other driver Kris Meeke also failed to finish as he broke the suspension on the third stage of the event.

Hyundai’s Thiery Neuville secured his fourth win of the 2017 WRC season with a straightforward run throughout.