Carty is now Connacht's record points scorer

Jack Carty became Connacht’s all-time top points scorer in last Saturday's emphatic 43-24 win over the Emirates Lions.

The Athlone man's tally of 13 points - five conversions and one penalty - took him past Eric Elwood’s haul of 1,152 points.

The tally of legendary out-half Elwood had stood for some time, but Carty set a new record in the United Rugby Championship game at the Sportsground, Galway.

Team captain Carty received a rapturous reception from Connacht fans when he hit the new milestone. And Jack's home club, Buccaneers RFC, has also congratulated him on his achievement.

While Barrymore native Carty was setting a new points record, another local player, Brideswell's Niall Murray, impressed in the pack against the Lions. Niall was partnered in the second row by his younger brother Darragh.

In addition, scrum-half Caolin Blade became the third player in three successive games to score a hat-trick as Connacht claimed an impressive bonus-point win over the South African side.

The other Connacht tries came from Diarmuid Kilgallen, Tiernan O’Halloran and Shane Delahunt.

The victory boosts Connacht's chances of making the knockout stages of the URC.

Connacht (v Emirates Lions): Tiernan O’Halloran (1 try); Diarmuid Kilgallen (1 try), Tom Farrell, Cathal Forde, John Porch; Jack Carty (captain, 5 cons, 1 pen), Caolin Blade (3 tries); Peter Dooley, Shane Delahunt (1 try), Jack Aungier; Darragh Murray, Niall Murray; Josh Murphy, Conor Oliver, Jarrad Butler. Replacements: Oran McNulty for O’Halloran (57 mins); Dominic Robertson-McCoy for Aungier (59); Shamus Hurley-Langton for Murphy (59); Tom Daly for Forde (61); Jordan Duggan for Dooley (61); Dylan Tierney-Martin for Delahunt (62); Kieran Marmion for Blade (64); Leva Fifita for D Murray (68).