David Connolly
| Date of birth | 06 June 1977 |
| Place of birth | Willesden |
| Nationality | Irish |
| Weight | 72 kg |
| Height | 1.73 m |
| Position | Forward |
Connolly enjoyed a sensational start to his career, not least for the Republic.
He came to the fore in the qualification campaign for the 1998 World Cup when, whilst still aged 19, he scored an 11-minute first half hat-trick against Liechtenstein.
He was similarly prolific at club level with two hat-tricks in his first seven games for Watford.
Connolly's early scoring exploits soon led to a move to leading Dutch outfit Feyenoord.
Unfortunately, he wasn't able to fulfil his potential in Holland, subsequently losing his place in Ireland's front line.
The diminutive, pacy striker returned to England for the 1998-99 season with an extended loan spell at Wolverhampton Wanderers, making the permanent return to the Football League when he joined Wimbledon in the 2001 close season.
Connolly joined West Ham United in July 2003 for £285,000 in a three-year deal.
He joined Leicester City in July 2004 with a three-year contract.
Connolly joined Wigan Athletic in August 2005 with a three-year contract.
He joined Sunderland in August 2006 with a three-year contract.
Connolly joined Southampton in October 2009 with a contract to June 2010 that was extended to June 2011 in July 2010 and to June 2012 in May 2011.
He joined close rivals Portsmouth in December 2012 with a monthly contract that was extended to June 2015 in May 2013 before it was cancelled in January 2015.
Club history
| Team | Joined | Left | Loan / Trialist |
|---|---|---|---|
| Watford | 15 Nov 1994 | 01 Aug 1997 | |
| Feyenoord | 01 Aug 1997 | 07 Jul 2001 | |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 21 Aug 1998 | 13 May 1999 | L |
| Wimbledon | 07 Jul 2001 | 31 Jul 2003 | |
| West Ham United | 31 Jul 2003 | 20 Jul 2004 | |
| Leicester City | 20 Jul 2004 | 31 Aug 2005 | |
| Wigan Athletic | 31 Aug 2005 | 31 Aug 2006 | |
| Sunderland | 31 Aug 2006 | 30 Jun 2009 | |
| Southampton | 08 Oct 2009 | 30 Jun 2012 | |
| Portsmouth | 31 Dec 2012 | 15 Jan 2015 | |
| Oxford United | 31 Jan 2014 | 31 May 2014 | L |
| AFC Wimbledon | 15 Jan 2015 | 08 Mar 2015 |
Club stats
| Season | Team | Competition | Apps | Subs | Goals | Y | R |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995-96 | Watford | FA Cup | 1 |
||||
| 1997-98 | Feyenoord | UEFA Champions League | 1 | ||||
| 1998-99 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | FA Cup | 1 |
||||
| 1998-99 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | League Cup | 2 | ||||
| 2000-01 | Feyenoord | Dutch KPN Telecompetitie | 9 | 6 |
5 |
1
|
|
| 2001-02 | Wimbledon | FA Cup | 2 | ||||
| 2001-02 | Wimbledon | League Cup | 1 | ||||
| 2001-02 | Wimbledon | League Division 1 | 35 | 18 |
3
|
2
|
|
| 2002-03 | Wimbledon | FA Cup | 2 | ||||
| 2002-03 | Wimbledon | League Division 1 | 28 | 24 |
1
|
||
| 2003-04 | West Ham United | FA Cup | 4 | 2 |
1
|
||
| 2003-04 | West Ham United | League Cup | 2 | 2 |
|||
| 2003-04 | West Ham United | League Division 1 | 37 | 2 |
10 |
6
|
1
|
| 2003-04 | West Ham United | League Division 1 Play-Offs | 3 | ||||
| 2004-05 | Leicester City | FA Cup | 3 | 2 |
1
|
||
| 2004-05 | Leicester City | League Championship | 43 | 1 |
13 |
5
|
1
|
| 2005-06 | Leicester City | League Championship | 5 | 4 |
|||
| 2005-06 | Wigan Athletic | FA Cup | 1 | 1 |
|||
| 2005-06 | Wigan Athletic | League Cup | 2 | 1 |
1 |
||
| 2005-06 | Wigan Athletic | Premier League | 4 | 13 |
1 |
||
| 2006-07 | Sunderland | FA Cup | 1 | ||||
| 2006-07 | Sunderland | League Championship | 30 | 6 |
13 |
1
|
|
| 2006-07 | Wigan Athletic | Premier League | 2 |
||||
| 2007-08 | Sunderland | FA Cup | 1 |
||||
| 2007-08 | Sunderland | League Cup | 1 |
1
|
|||
| 2007-08 | Sunderland | Premier League | 1 | 2 |
|||
| 2009-10 | Southampton | FA Cup | 1 | 2 |
|||
| 2009-10 | Southampton | Johnstones Paint Trophy | 1 | 1 |
|||
| 2009-10 | Southampton | League One | 9 | 11 |
5 |
1
|
|
| 2010-11 | Southampton | FA Cup | 1 |
1 |
|||
| 2010-11 | Southampton | Johnstones Paint Trophy | 1 | ||||
| 2010-11 | Southampton | League Cup | 1 |
||||
| 2010-11 | Southampton | League One | 8 | 7 |
3 |
||
| 2011-12 | Southampton | League Championship | 17 | 9 |
6 |
1
|
|
| 2012-13 | Portsmouth | League One | 15 | 2 |
7 |
||
| 2013-14 | Oxford United | League Two | 8 | 8 |
4 |
||
| 2013-14 | Portsmouth | FA Cup | 1 |
1 |
|||
| 2013-14 | Portsmouth | Johnstones Paint Trophy | 1 |
||||
| 2013-14 | Portsmouth | League Two | 11 | 7 |
4 |
1
|
1
|
| 2014-15 | AFC Wimbledon | League Two | 2 | 6 |
1 |
Please note: Career stats are based on performances in the Premier and Football Leagues and (in most cases all) internationals.
Club matches
| Date | Match | Result | Competition | Round | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 Jan 1996 | Wimbledon v Watford | L | 1-0 | FA Cup | 3rd round replay |
Please note: Match history is complete for the Premier and Football Leagues and (in most cases all) internationals.
International stats
| Season | Team | Competition | Apps | Subs | Goals | Y | R |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995-96 | Republic of Ireland | International Friendly | 2 | ||||
| 1995-96 | Republic of Ireland | US Cup | 1 | 1 |
|||
| 1996-97 | Republic of Ireland | FIFA World Cup | 2 | 3 |
|||
| 1997-98 | Republic of Ireland | FIFA World Cup | 4 | 1 |
1 |
1
|
|
| 1997-98 | Republic of Ireland | International Friendly | 2 | ||||
| 1997-98 | Republic of Ireland | Under-21 Tournament | 1 | 1 |
|||
| 1998-99 | Republic of Ireland | Charity Omagh Fund | 1 |
||||
| 1998-99 | Republic of Ireland | International Friendly | 2 | 1 |
|||
| 1998-99 | Republic of Ireland | UEFA European Championship | 2 |
||||
| 1999-00 | Republic of Ireland | International Friendly | 1 | 1 |
|||
| 1999-00 | Republic of Ireland | UEFA European Championship | 1 | 1 |
|||
| 2000-01 | Republic of Ireland | FIFA World Cup | 3 | 1 |
|||
| 2000-01 | Republic of Ireland | International Friendly | 1 |
||||
| 2001-02 | Republic of Ireland | FIFA World Cup | 2 | 1 |
1 |
||
| 2001-02 | Republic of Ireland | International Friendly | 4 |
||||
| 2002-03 | Republic of Ireland | International Friendly | 1 | 1 |
|||
| 2002-03 | Republic of Ireland | UEFA European Championship | 1 | ||||
| 2003-04 | Republic of Ireland | International Friendly | 1 | 1 |
1 |
||
| 2003-04 | Republic of Ireland | UEFA European Championship | 1 | ||||
| 2005-06 | Republic of Ireland | FIFA World Cup | 1 |
Please note: Career stats are based on performances in the Premier and Football Leagues and (in most cases all) internationals.
International matches
| Date | Match | Result | Competition | Round | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 May 1996 | Republic of Ireland v Portugal | L | 0-1 | International Friendly | |
| 04 Jun 1996 | Netherlands v Republic of Ireland | L | 3-1 | International Friendly | |
| 09 Jun 1996 | USA v Republic of Ireland | L | 2-1 | US Cup | |
| 12 Jun 1996 | Mexico v Republic of Ireland | D | 2-2 | US CUP | |
| 30 Apr 1997 | Romania v Republic of Ireland | L | 1-0 | FIFA World Cup | Group 8 |
| 21 May 1997 | Republic of Ireland v Liechtenstein | W | 5-0 | FIFA World Cup | Group 8 |
| 20 Aug 1997 | Republic of Ireland v Lithuania | D | 0-0 | FIFA World Cup | Group 8 |
| 06 Sep 1997 | Iceland v Republic of Ireland | W | 2-4 | FIFA World Cup | Group 8 |
| 10 Sep 1997 | Lithuania v Republic of Ireland | W | 1-2 | FIFA World Cup | Group 8 |
| 29 Oct 1997 | Republic of Ireland v Belgium | D | 1-1 | FIFA World Cup | 1st leg play-off |
| 15 Nov 1997 | Belgium v Republic of Ireland | L | 2-1 | FIFA World Cup | 2nd leg play-off |
| 25 Mar 1998 | Czech Republic v Republic of Ireland | L | 2-1 | International Friendly | |
| 18 May 1998 | Republic of Ireland v Scotland | W | 3-0 | U21 TOURNAMENT | |
| 23 May 1998 | Republic of Ireland v Mexico | D | 0-0 | International Friendly | |
| 18 Nov 1998 | Yugoslavia v Republic of Ireland | L | 1-0 | UEFA European Championship | Group 8 |
| 10 Feb 1999 | Republic of Ireland v Paraguay | W | 2-0 | International Friendly | |
| 28 Apr 1999 | Republic of Ireland v Sweden | W | 2-0 | International Friendly | |
| 29 May 1999 | Republic of Ireland v Northern Ireland | L | 0-1 | Charity Omagh Fund | |
| 09 Jun 1999 | Republic of Ireland v North Macedonia | W | 1-0 | UEFA European Championship | Group 8 |
| 13 Nov 1999 | Republic of Ireland v Turkey | D | 1-1 | UEFA European Championship | Play-off 1st leg |
| 17 Nov 1999 | Turkey v Republic of Ireland | D | 0-0 | UEFA European Championship | Play-off 2nd leg |
| 23 Feb 2000 | Republic of Ireland v Czech Republic | W | 3-2 | International Friendly | |
| 26 Apr 2000 | Republic of Ireland v Greece | L | 0-1 | International Friendly | |
| 02 Sep 2000 | Netherlands v Republic of Ireland | D | 2-2 | FIFA World Cup | Europe group 2 |
| 15 Nov 2000 | Republic of Ireland v Finland | W | 3-0 | International Friendly | |
| 24 Mar 2001 | Cyprus v Republic of Ireland | W | 0-4 | FIFA World Cup | Europe group 2 |
| 28 Mar 2001 | Andorra v Republic of Ireland | W | 0-3 | FIFA World Cup | Europe group 2 |
| 25 Apr 2001 | Republic of Ireland v Andorra | W | 3-1 | FIFA World Cup | Europe group 2 |
| 15 Aug 2001 | Republic of Ireland v Croatia | D | 2-2 | International Friendly | |
| 06 Oct 2001 | Republic of Ireland v Cyprus | W | 4-0 | FIFA World Cup | Europe group 2 |
| 15 Nov 2001 | Iran v Republic of Ireland | L | 1-0 | FIFA World Cup | Europe v Asia play-off |
| 27 Mar 2002 | Republic of Ireland v Denmark | W | 3-0 | International Friendly | |
| 17 Apr 2002 | Republic of Ireland v USA | W | 2-1 | International Friendly | |
| 16 May 2002 | Republic of Ireland v Nigeria | L | 1-2 | International Friendly | |
| 16 Jun 2002 | Spain v Republic of Ireland | L | 1-1 (2-3) | FIFA World Cup | Finals 2nd round |
| 12 Feb 2003 | Scotland v Republic of Ireland | W | 0-2 | International Friendly | |
| 30 Apr 2003 | Republic of Ireland v Norway | W | 1-0 | International Friendly | |
| 07 Jun 2003 | Republic of Ireland v Albania | W | 2-1 | UEFA European Championship | Group 10 |
| 19 Aug 2003 | Republic of Ireland v Australia | W | 2-1 | International Friendly | |
| 09 Sep 2003 | Republic of Ireland v Turkey | D | 2-2 | International Friendly | |
| 11 Oct 2003 | Switzerland v Republic of Ireland | L | 2-0 | UEFA European Championship | Group 10 |
| 08 Oct 2005 | Cyprus v Republic of Ireland | W | 0-1 | FIFA World Cup | Europe group 4 |
Please note: Match history is complete for the Premier and Football Leagues and (in most cases all) internationals.