This week on The Knock On, KCLR Sport’s weekly rugby podcast, Stephen Byrne is joined by Tom Crotty of Carlow Rugby Club, James Blanchfield from Kilkenny RFC, and Paddy Browne of Tullow RFC to break down all the latest action from across the local rugby scene.

Carlow delivered a dominant performance in the Towns Cup, overpowering New Ross 66–0 to book their place in the next round, where they will face Wicklow. The fixture also carried a poignant moment, with a tribute paid to the late Martin Dunphy. Martin was a former Carlow player and a central figure in the club’s golden era, playing a pivotal role in the historic Towns Cup teams that achieved an unprecedented three-in-a-row in 1992, 1993 and 1994.

The scheduled ladies’ game involving Carlow was unfortunately called off due to adverse weather conditions.

Kilkenny also progressed in the Towns Cup following a solid 27–7 victory over Enniscorthy. They now set up a next-round clash with Tullow. It was a successful outing for Kilkenny across the board, with their women’s side continuing their impressive form by defeating Navan 24–10. That result leaves the Kilkenny women with an outstanding record of nine wins from ten games this season.

Tullow, meanwhile, had a bye in the Towns Cup but came into the next round with confidence after a strong league win over Seapoint the previous week, despite finishing that match with just 13 players. Tullow returns to league action this weekend with a challenging fixture away to Wicklow.

We also bring you all the latest youth rugby news and updates from around the region.

All that and more on The Knock On.