Carlow has taken home the first place prize at the Pan Celtic National Song Contest.
The national competition returned to Carlow for the first time since 2020, after a three year hiatus due to the Covid Pandemic.
Encore represented the home county with their song ‘Cion Cairde’, composed by Melíosa Breathnach and Clár Ní Dhuinn.
The group will now represent Ireland in the International Song Contest at the Pan Celtic Festival in Carlow at Easter.
Organiser of the event Bríde de Róiste told KCLR News that “The atmosphere was just fantastic as the crowd just came delighted to have a night out and they came as representatives, I suppose, and followers and fans of the other songs, 16 of which had qualified for the final on Saturday night and I suppose we were just so thrilled because the standard from all songs was so high, a whole lot of them had a chance of winning it”.
