Alan Connolly (born 19 July 2001) is an Irish hurler. At club level he plays with Blackrock and at inter-county level with the Cork senior hurling team. He usually lines out at full-forward.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Irish name | Ailéon Ó Conghaile | ||
| Sport | Hurling | ||
| Position | Full-forward | ||
| Born |
19 July 2001 Blackrock, Cork, Ireland | ||
| Occupation | Student | ||
| Club(s)* | |||
| Years | Club | Apps (scores) | |
2019–present | Blackrock | 23 (16–155) | |
| Club titles | |||
| Cork titles | 1 | ||
| Colleges(s) | |||
| Years | College | ||
2020–present | MTU Cork | ||
| College titles | |||
| Fitzgibbon titles | 0 | ||
| Inter-county(ies)** | |||
| Years | County | Apps (scores) | |
2020–present | Cork | 15 (8-18) | |
| Inter-county titles | |||
| Munster titles | 0 | ||
| All-Irelands | 0 | ||
| NHL | 0 | ||
| All Stars | 0 | ||
|
* club appearances and scores correct as of 21:08, 8 October 2024. **Inter County team apps and scores correct as of 22:05, 7 July 2024. | |||
Early life
editBorn and raised in Blackrock, Barrett first played hurling to a high standard as a student at St Francis College in Rochestown. He progressed through the various age grades before joining the school's senior team. Connolly was top scorer with 0-07 when St Francis College beat Hamilton High School by 1-13 to 0-14 to claim the All-Ireland PPS SBHC title.[1] He was a Dr O'Callaghan Cup runner-up in February 2020 after a 3-24 to 1-15 defeat by Midleton CBS, in what was his last game for Rochestown College.[2] Connolly later studied at Munster Technological University Cork and was added to their Fitzgibbon Cup panel in 2023.[3]
Club career
editConnolly began his club career at juvenile and underage levels with the Blackrock club, before progressing to the club's senior team. He made his championship debut in a 1–25 to 2–16 defeat by Newtownshandrum in August 2019.[4] Connolly won a Cork SHC medal in October 2020 after top-scoring with 0-13 in the 4-26 to 4-18 extra-time defeat of Glen Rovers in the final.[5] He also claimed the man of the match award and was the championship's top scorer with 5-52.
Inter-county career
editConnolly first played for Cork as a member of the minor team during their unsuccessful Munster MHC campaign in 2018.[6][7] After a year with no inter-county activity, he joined Cork's under-20 team in 2020. Success in this grade was immediate with Connolly claiming Munster and All-Ireland U20HC medals in 2020 after respective defeats of Tipperary and Dublin.[8][9]
Connolly had one more year of under-20 hurling, however, his inclusion on the senior team in 2021, after being an unused substitute the previous year, made him ineligible for the grade.[10][11] He made his senior debut in May 2021 when he scored two goals after coming on as a substitute for Shane Barrett in a 5–22 to 1–27 National Hurling League defeat of Waterford.[12] Connolly was part of the matchday panel when Cork suffered a 3-32 to 1-22 defeat by Limerick in the 2021 All-Ireland final.[13]
Connolly was at full-forward when Cork lost the 2022 National League final to Waterford.[14] He missed the entire 2023 season with a shoulder injury, before a hamstring injury further delayed his return.[15]
Personal life
editConnolly's uncles, Tom and Jim Cashman, won six All-Ireland SHC medals with Cork between 1977 and 1990. His grandfather, Mick Cashman, was a substitute on Cork's 1952–1954 three-in-a-row team, while his granduncle, Jimmy Brohan, also lined out with that team.[16]
Career statistics
editClub
edit- As of 6 October 2024.
| Team | Year | Cork PSHC | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Score | ||
| Blackrock | 2019 | 1 | 0-01 |
| 2020 | 6 | 5–52 | |
| 2021 | 5 | 5–31 | |
| 2022 | 6 | 1–39 | |
| 2023 | 0 | 0-00 | |
| 2024 | 5 | 5-32 | |
| Career total | 23 | 16–155 | |
Inter-county
edit- As of 7 July 2024
| Team | Year | National League | Munster | All-Ireland | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Score | Apps | Score | Apps | Score | Apps | Score | ||
| Cork | 2020 | Division 1A | 0 | 0-00 | 0 | 0-00 | 0 | 0-00 | 0 | 0-00 |
| 2021 | 5 | 4-02 | 1 | 0-00 | 2 | 0-02 | 8 | 4-04 | ||
| 2022 | 5 | 1-05 | 3 | 4-02 | 2 | 0-02 | 10 | 5-09 | ||
| 2023 | 0 | 0-00 | 0 | 0-00 | — | 0 | 0-00 | |||
| 2024 | 3 | 6-04 | 4 | 4-09 | 3 | 0-03 | 10 | 10-16 | ||
| Total | 13 | 11-11 | 8 | 8-11 | 7 | 0-07 | 28 | 19-29 | ||
Honours
edit- St Francis College
- Munster PPS Under-19 B Hurling Championship: 2019
- Blackrock
- Cork
References
edit- ^ "'Thankfully we weathered the storm in the second-half' - St Francis College claim Tom Collum cup". Irish Examiner. 16 February 2019. Retrieved 11 July 2024.
- ^ O'Callaghan, Therese (14 February 2020). "Midleton take victory in high-scoring Dr O'Callaghan Cup final". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
- ^ "MTU Cork fall short against Galway in Fitzgibbon opener". Echo Live. 18 January 2023. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
- ^ O'Callaghan, Therese (11 August 2019). "Resolute Newtown put Rockies to sword". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
- ^ Fogarty, John (4 October 2020). "Alan Connolly leads the charge as Blackrock secure first Cork title in 18 years". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
- ^ Horgan, John (17 May 2018). "Blarney dynamo Barrett captains the Cork minor hurlers in provincial opener". The Echo. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
- ^ Hurley, Denis (20 May 2018). "Strong finish powers Cork minors from behind to Munster opener win over Clare". The 42. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
- ^ Moynihan, Michael (23 December 2020). "Jack Cahalane and Shane Barrett inspire Cork to Munster U20 title". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
- ^ O'Toole, Fintan (10 July 2021). "Cork end All-Ireland hurling title wait as goals key in U20 final success against Dublin". The 42. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
- ^ O'Toole, Fintan (12 October 2020). "Young forward duo added to Cork senior hurling squad after impressive club form". The 42. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
- ^ "Team news: Connolly and Barrett ineligible for Cork U20s". Hogan Stand. 19 July 2021. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
- ^ O'Toole, Fintan (9 May 2021). "Cork strike five goals as they win high-scoring hurling league clash against Waterford". The 42. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
- ^ Fogarty, John (22 August 2021). "Will record-breaking All-Ireland victory over Cork be Limerick's high water mark? Don't bet on it". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
- ^ Fogarty, John (2 April 2022). "Stephen Bennett leads Waterford to emphatic Allianz NHL Division 1 final win over Cork". Irish Independent. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
- ^ Fogarty, John (19 October 2023). "Cork's Alan Connolly to be fit for 2024 season despite hamstring injury". Echo Live. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
- ^ "Cashman's cup... a family tradition of county glory is maintained in Blackrock". Echo Live. 5 October 2020. Retrieved 9 May 2021.