A grim night for the visitors to the RDS. And it could have been much worse.

Jack O’Donoughe’s first-half try and a perfect kicking performance from JJ Hanrahan gave Munster the honours in this feisty inter-pro, which saw them stretch their lead at the top of the PRO14 Conference B standings.

Connacht produced a frustrating and sloppy performance on their way to a bonus point victory over Southern Kings in the PRO14 on Saturday.

Keith Earls will make his first Munster appearance of the season in tomorrow's Champions Cup opener against the Ospreys.

Last year’s beaten Cork county SFC finalists Duhallow remain on course to go one step further than 2018 after they ground out victory over Newcestown at Páirc Uí Rinn yesterday.

Five-try Connacht picked up their second bonus-point victory in a week as Andy Friend’s side overwhelmed Dragons at Rodney Parade.

Andy Friend has knocked down a few barriers since arriving in Galway 15 months ago, and this evening (kick-off 7.35pm) hopes to win in Wales for the first time since he took charge of Connacht.

St Brendan’s, backboned by Kerry stars Jack Barry and Diarmuid O’Connor, hammered Shannon Rangers in this Kerry SFC R3 mismatch in Tralee on Saturday night.

Newcestown have qualified for a first Cork SFC semi-final after battling past Ilen Rovers in difficult conditions at Rosscarbery.

A first county SFC quarter-final since 2011 awaits Newcestown after they dug deep to see off Mallow at Coachford on Saturday evening.

Dripsey are through to the next round of the Cork Intermediate Hurling Championship as they deservedly defeated Na Piarsaigh 1-15 to 1-11 in Ballincollig last night.

Charleville proved too strong for 14-man Mallow in the RedFM Division 2 HL final in Buttevant today.

Rory Best’s ankle injury has cleared up in time to allow him to have the send-off he hoped for, and the Ireland captain suspects he’ll be an emotional wreck when he says goodbye at the Kingspan Stadium tonight

A raucous Sportsground welcomed Connacht’s progression into the play-off stages of the PRO14 as their team turned in a bonus point performance in their most important game of the season so far.

Cork IFC: Dromtariffe 3-9 Millstreet 1-10

Michael Bradley spent most of his seven years at the Sportsground not just wondering if he would be in a job at the end of the season, but rather whether the Connacht team he was coaching would still be in existence.

Connacht got the result, but not the performance they required in this fraught win over Michael Bradley’s Zebre.

Goals aplenty and lots of hooking and blocking as St Colman’s took advantage of the strong wind in a dominant second half to take the spoils – their first since 2008 and their sixth title in all.

A John Sheehan goal proved pivotal for Carbery as they eventually saw off Avondhu in the opening round of the divisional phase of the Cork SHC in Páirc Uí Rinn last night.

Jack Carty returned to the Sportsground after his Irish debut in the Six Nations to guide them to a priceless victory in their quest for a knockout place and Champions Cup rugby next season.

Connacht host Benetton Rugby at the Sportsground this evening hoping for a victory to keep their PRO14 play-off ambitions on track.

Andy Friend believes his players let themselves down after they missed a golden opportunity to move into the PRO14 play-off places by slipping to a narrow defeat against the Cardiff Blues in Wales.

Connacht 26 Glasgow Warriors 27

Connacht’s decline after winning the PRO 12 title in 2016 started immediately in the first game of the defence of the crown when they fell to a record 41-5 loss to Glasgow Warriors at the Sportsground.

The visit of Pope Francis to Knock at the end of August has impacted on club championship matches in Mayo.

Just when you think you have them cornered, Kerry find a way out.

The victory extends Kerry’s winning-run at minor level to 26 games.

Such is the structure of the All-Ireland MFC, Kerry and Cork would much rather have stayed clear of each other until next month’s Munster decider.

Connacht 47 Leinster 10: On a day when Connacht bade farewell to their talisman from Portumna, along comes another farmer’s son from a few miles away on the other side of the River Shannon to lay down a marker and offer hope for the future with hooker Shane Delahunt producing a remarkable display on a day of celebration in Galway.

Connacht make their final away trip of a disappointing season when they face another searching evening in Glasgow against a Warriors side aiming to wrap up a home quarter-final in the PRO14.

Nobody was surprised at the margin of Cork’s victory in last night’s Electric Ireland Munster MFC first-round tie in Páirc Uí Rinn, least of all Waterford boss Tom Flynn.

Cork secured a Munster MFC semi-final spot with a straightforward win over Waterford at Páirc Uí Rinn this evening.

Goalkeeper Diarmuid Doody is the only survivor from last year’s Munster U17 football competition as Cork begin their campaign in the new minor grade tonight against Waterford in Páirc Uí Rinn (throw-in 7pm).

Cheetahs 26 Connacht 25: Two weeks ago, as Connacht headed off on a tour to Treviso in Italy and the Highveld in South Africa, they would probably have settled for a return of five points against two sides who have been chalking up the results in their own backyards.

Connacht will hope to put PRO14 victories back-to-back for only the second time this season when they battle the heat and demands of the Highveld against the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein this evening (5.35pm Irish time).

Connacht 55 Brive 10: Connacht coach Kieran Keane is relishing facing into three consecutive inter-pro derbies with a squad high on confidence after their latest European masterclass.

Their PRO14 form is dodgy to say the least, but Connacht’s pedigree in the European Challenge Cup is obvious and on Saturday night they took a big step not only towards securing a quarter-final spot, but ensuring that they will enjoy home advantage in the last eight.

Zebre 24 Connacht 10: Michael Bradley knows all about building from the bottom in professional rugby — his seven years at the Sportsground took Connacht through the most difficult period in their history — and he is happy with the progress he is making in his first few months with Zebre. 

Connacht coach Kieran Keane says a resurgent Zebre will pose a huge threat in Parma this afternoon as his side aim to bounce back to winning ways before refocusing next week to the European Challenge Cup campaign.

Guinness PRO14: Connacht 23 - Cheetahs 15: Tiernan O’Halloran has no qualms about being left out of the Irish squad for the autumn internationals, but the 26-year-old will be keeping a bag packed over the next few weeks in case there is a call from Joe Schmidt.

Connacht 15 Worcester Warriors 8: You suspect the more Kieran Keane settles into life in Galway the more he appreciates exactly what his predecessor Pat Lam achieved, not just with limited resources but the manner in which he got them to play in the difficult climatic conditions.

SCARLETS 36 - CONNACHT 27: No surprise result against the Scarlets, no reversal of fortunes for Connacht yet, but they came ever so close, producing their best attacking performance this season.

Connacht coach Kieran Keane knows his men have an uphill battle if they are to oust champions Scarlets at Parc y Scarlets tonight.

Connacht lacked so much ‘attitude and commitment’ according to coach Kieran Keane who bristled with frustration as his side lost for the third time in four PRO14 games on Saturday.