Doesn't sound to hopeful for me either. I am just about to embark on a FIC at Andrewsfield and hope to be complete in June. I trained at Newtownards and always wanted to attain a FI rating as I always aspired to be as good as the guys that taught me (they know who they are). I don't like to see them mistreated.
I now face doing all this and then getting very little hours - I would be happy with a few a weekend and for a half decent removal time of my FI(R) but I understand and respect the 'pecking order' and that I would be the new guy. It seems I'm the 'newer' guy and now further down the order than I thought but that's life I suppose. (shouldn't have wasted my dough on those expensive MEIR and MCC and just done CPL & FIC first!!!)
Ok I can't expect hours but a few would be nice - outlook=bleak, entusiam=low, more money for little gain ( but there's always the risks)
More fool me!