Alan Connolly has turned into a player who can’t stop scoring for Cork.

The Blackrock attacker puts it down to a little perseverance and a whole lot of love.

The perseverance part he can take all the credit for himself, bouncing back superbly across 2024 and 2025 after missing an entire year to injury.

A mixture of shoulder surgery in late 2022, and then a bad hamstring injury cost him the entire 2023 season with Cork.

That’s where the love of those closest to him came in, from his girlfriend Alanna who urged him to stay positive, to his family, his Blackrock clubmates and his friends.

And he hasn’t looked back since, starting every single Championship game for Cork in the last two seasons.

He’ll hit a new milestone this Sunday if he lines out against Kilkenny in the Allianz NHL – the first time he’s started four League games in a row.

“As it is, it’s the first time I’ve started three games in a row, in the League,” said Connolly, who outlined his injury issues.

“It was the shoulder at first, I played with that coming in and out, dislocating. Then I got surgery at the end of that year, came back in the summer of 2023, tore the hamstring, Grade 4. It wasn’t off the bone but it was nearly off the bone.

“I saw a specialist and he said I didn’t need surgery, because I thought I did. So I came on in the club championship for Blackrock that year, tried to play as much as I could.

“Then when that finished I just rested. I took three months off, from the October to January of 2024, not even running.”

Connolly emerged all the stronger for it, memorably sniping 3-1 on his first start back, against Offaly in March of 2024. He finished that League campaign with 6-4 and hasn’t looked back, lining out in the 2024 and 2025 All-Ireland finals.

And after starring in the sweet win over old rivals Tipperary earlier this month, he’ll be a marked man when Cork play Kilkenny this Sunday at UPMC Nowlan Park.

But he hasn’t forgotten all the support he got to bring him through that difficult period in 2023.

“My girlfriend, Alanna, was probably the biggest driver of that, she was so positive about it,” said Connolly. “It’s so true what people say, you need that love and support around you.

“I’m so grateful for the support I have with my family and her family, my Mam and Dad, my two brothers, their fiancés, Alanna’s family. I have my niece and nephew as well, Bobby and Elle. So it’s a great buzz around the family at the moment.”

All of those positive vibes are helping Connolly reach his full potential in red. With Patrick Horgan freshly retired, and Connolly now taking the frees and scoring for fun, could he even be the next great Leeside attacking icon?

“I’m just so team-focused at the moment, I wouldn’t really be thinking individually like that,” said Connolly, who has fired 25 goals in 44 League and Championship games.

“But I loved playing with Patrick. His professionalism and attitude, on and off the pitch, just coming before training, taking shots, you’d be watching him taking frees and doing this stuff. His recovery as well afterwards, he’s the ultimate professional. I learned loads off him.”

Cork will be hoping Connolly can keep up the strong form when they get back to business on Sunday. They’ve had a three-week break since beating Tipp in Round 3, their third win from three.

As much as Connolly has enjoyed the regular game time, he was glad of the break too.

“It was needed, to be honest,” he said. “It’s hard to get up for a game every weekend. You’d be wired the day of the match, obviously you’d be nervous and stuff on the day of the game. Then it’s such a release after the match. And you’re trying to do that every weekend, it can be tough. We were obviously still training away, having training matches, but it was a good break between games.”