Gary John Connolly (born 22 June 1971) is a former professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

footballer who played in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s as a and for St Helens,

Canterbury Bulldogs The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the NRL Telstra Premiership, as well as competitions facilita ...

Wigan Warriors The Wigan Warriors are a professional rugby league club in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the Super League. Formed in 1872 as Wigan Football Club, Wigan was a founding member of the Rugby Football League, Northern Rugby ...

Leeds Rhinos The Leeds Rhinos are a professional rugby league club in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The club was formed in 1870 as Leeds St John's and play in the Super League, the top tier of English rugby league. They have played home matches at Headi ...

and for the

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

national side. In the twilight of his career, he played

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

for

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

side

Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following the ...

Playing career

St Helens

Connolly was born in St. Helens,

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

, England. At 17 years of age he appeared in St. Helens' ill-fated 0–27 defeat by their arch rivals Wigan at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

in the 1989 Challenge Cup final on the back of some impressive performances. It was the first time in

Challenge Cup Final The Challenge Cup of Rugby league was instituted in the 1896–97 Northern Rugby Football Union season, 1896–97 and the final was contested between Batley Bulldogs, Batley and St Helens R.F.C., St. Helens at Headingley Rugby Stadium, Headingley, ...

history at Wembley that a team had been held scoreless. Gary Connolly made his international rugby league début for

against the touring

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

team on 9 November 1991 at

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas, Lancashire, River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the nor ...

. Connolly played from the bench as the Lions defeated the Kumuls 56–4. He was later selected to go on the

1992 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand The 1992 Great Britain Lions tour of Australasia was a tour by the Great Britain national rugby league team, nicknamed the 'Lions', of Papua New Guinea, Australia and New Zealand which took place between May and July 1992. The tour was the last of ...

where he played from the bench in the final two Ashes Tests against

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

before moving to the centres for the tests against

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. Later that year he was selected to play in the centres for Great Britain in their 6–10 defeat by Australia in the

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

Rugby League World Cup The Rugby League World Cup is an international rugby league tournament contested by the top national men's representative teams. The tournament is administered by the International Rugby League and was first held in France in 1954, which was ...

Final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...

at Wembley. Gary Connolly played right- in St. Helens' 24-14 victory over

Rochdale Hornets The Rochdale Hornets are a professional rugby league club from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England, competing in the Championship, the second tier of European rugby league. The Rochdale Hornets are one of the original twenty-two rugby clubs ...

in the

1991 Lancashire Cup File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, 1991 Russian presidential election, elected as Russia's first President of Russia, president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated ...

Final during the 1991–92 season at

Wilderspool Stadium Wilderspool Stadium was a rugby league stadium in Warrington, England. The ground was Warrington RLFC's old ground before moving to the Halliwell Jones Stadium. History In 1898, Warrington RLFC moved to the Wilderspool Stadium. A 10-year lea ...

Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...

, on Sunday 20 October 1991, and played right- in the 4-5 defeat by

in the

1992 Lancashire Cup Year 199 (Roman numerals, CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 ''Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been ...

Final during the 1992–93 season at

Knowsley Road Knowsley Road in Eccleston, St Helens, Merseyside, was the home ground of St. Helens from 1890 until its closure in 2010. St Helens Town FC played their home fixtures at Knowsley Road from 2002 until 2010. For a period, the venue also hosted ...

, St. Helens, on Sunday 18 October 1992. His move to rivals, Wigan, in 1993 was a controversial one and many St. Helens followers labelled him '

Judas Judas Iscariot (; grc-x-biblical, Ἰούδας Ἰσκαριώτης; syc, ܝܗܘܕܐ ܣܟܪܝܘܛܐ; died AD) was a disciple and one of the original Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. According to all four canonical gospels, Judas betraye ...

'. Wigan paid £250,000 for Gary Connolly when he moved from St Helens in 1993 (based on increases in average earnings, this would be approximately £496,800 in 2013).

Wigan

Connolly was a member of the successful Wigan team of the mid-1990s. After the

1993–94 Rugby Football League season The 1993–94 Rugby Football League season was the 99th ever season of professional rugby league football in Britain. Sixteen teams competed from August 1993 until May 1994 for a number of titles, primarily the Stones Bitter Championship. Season ...

he travelled with defending champions

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

for the

1994 World Club Challenge The 1994 MMI World Club Challenge was a replay of the 1992 World Club Challenge, with 1993–94 Rugby Football League season champions Wigan facing the 1993 NSWRL season premiers, the Brisbane Broncos, this time in Australia. Wigan were clearl ...

, as a fullback in their 20–14 win over Australian premiers the

Brisbane Broncos The Brisbane Broncos Rugby League Football Club Ltd., commonly referred to as the Broncos, is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Brisbane, Queensland. Founded in April 1987, the Broncos play in Australia's elite com ...

at the

ANZ Stadium ANZ may refer to: People * Anz (musician), a British DJ and electronic musician Banks * ANZ (bank), Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited, the fourth-largest bank in Australia ** ANZ Bank New Zealand, the largest bank in New Zealand ...

in front of a

World Club Challenge The World Club Challenge is an annual rugby league competition between the winners of the Australasian National Rugby League (NRL) and the European Super League, for the de facto club world championship of the sport. The first such match was pl ...

record attendance of 54,220. Prior to his move to Wigan, Connolly played 15 games of the

1993 NSWRL season The 1993 NSWRL season (known as the 1993 Winfield Cup Premiership for sponsorship reasons) was the eighty-sixth season of professional rugby league football in Australia. The New South Wales Rugby League's sixteen teams competed for the J. J. G ...

with

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

club

Canterbury-Bankstown Canterbury-Bankstown is a customary region of Sydney, Australia, in the south-western suburbs. The area is located around the Bankstown railway line, to the west of the St George region and to the south of the Inner West region. The suburbs o ...

. While with the Bulldogs, Connolly played mostly in the centres and crossed for 5 tries including 2 on debut against South Sydney. While Connolly was a star import for the Bulldogs, his worst game came when Brisbane Broncos international centre

Steve Renouf Steven "Pearl" Renouf (born 8 June 1970) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. He was known as one of the sport's greatest s. Renouf set numerous records for the Brisbane Broncos ...

scored 4 tries against him in their game at the ANZ Stadium. Gary Connolly played left- in

's 2-33 defeat by

Castleford Castleford is a town within the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 45,106 at a 2021 population estimate. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, to the north of the town centre the River Calder joins the ...

in the 1993–94 Regal Trophy Final during the 1993–94 season at

Elland Road Elland Road is a football stadium in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, which has been the home of Premier League club Leeds United since the club's formation in 1919. The stadium is the 14th largest football stadium in England. The g ...

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

on Saturday 22 January 1994, played left- and scored a

try Try or TRY may refer to: Music Albums * ''Try!'', an album by the John Mayer Trio * ''Try'' (Bebo Norman album) (2014) Songs * "Try" (Blue Rodeo song) (1987) * "Try" (Colbie Caillat song) (2014) * "Try" (Nelly Furtado song) (2004) * " Try (Ju ...

in the 40-10 victory over

in the 1994–95 Regal Trophy Final during the 1994–95 season at

Alfred McAlpine Stadium Kirklees Stadium (currently known due to naming rights, sponsorship as the John Smith's Stadium) is a multi-use stadium in Huddersfield in West Yorkshire, England. Since 1994, it has been the home ground of Association football, football club ...

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into ...

on Saturday 28 January 1995, and played in the 25-16 victory over St. Helens in the 1995–96 Regal Trophy Final during the 1994–95 season at

on Saturday 13 January 1996. In May 1996, Connolly was one of a number of Wigan's players to appear in both games of the two-match cross-code challenge series against

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

. Connolly was selected to play for the English national team in their 1995 World Cup campaign and played in the centres in the World Cup Final at Wembley, though England would go down to defending champions Australia 16–8. He was named in the

Super League Dream Team The Super League Dream Team is an annually-selected rugby league All Star Team consisting of the players deemed to have been the best in their respective positions in the Super League competition. The team is selected by a panel of journalists and ...

of the

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

at . Connolly played a one-off international for a 'Rest of the World' team in their 28–8 loss against the Australian Rugby League's Kangaroos in mid-1997. Connolly played for Wigan at centre in their

1998 Super League Grand Final The 1998 JJB Super League Grand Final was the first staging of the Super League Grand Final and the conclusive and championship-deciding game of 1998's Super League III, and the first Grand Final of the Super League era. It was held on Saturday ...

victory against

. He was named in the 1999 season's Super League Dream Team at centre. Connolly played for the

at centre in their

2001 Super League Grand Final The 2001 Super League Grand Final was the Fourth official Grand Final and the conclusive and championship-deciding match of Super League VI. The match was held on Saturday 13 October 2001 at Old Trafford, Manchester, and was contested by Bradf ...

loss against the

Bradford Bulls The Bradford Bulls are a professional rugby league club in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the Championship. They have won five Challenge Cups, six league championships and three World Club Challenges. The team jersey is predom ...

Harlequins and Orrell

In late 1995,

became a professional game, allowing league players the opportunity to try their hand at the 15-a-side game. In the off-season following the completion of

Super League I The year 1996's Stones Bitter Super League I was the official name for the 102nd season of top-level rugby league football, and the first year of Europe's new championship: Super League. It is also the first season of rugby league to be played i ...

, a number of players from Super League clubs took the opportunity to sign short-term deals with clubs in the

Courage League Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition. The Premiership has consisted of thirteen clubs since 2021, and is the ...

, the top flight of rugby union in England. Connolly was one of a number of players from Wigan to sign such a deal, which he did with London club Harlequins. Connolly played 13 games for Harlequins, scoring eight tries, and was regarded as the best of the short-term converts at the time. In 2000, Connolly signed a new deal with Wigan that included the opportunity to play union for

Orrell Orrell may refer to: *Orrell, Greater Manchester, a district of the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan **Orrell (ward), an electoral ward of the Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council *Orrell, Merseyside, an urban area east of Bootle, in the Metropolitan Bo ...

during the off-season. Connolly remained at the club for two years until he was released by Wigan and signed for

in 2002.

Leeds

Connolly moved to

in 2003 and the same year was awarded the

Lance Todd Trophy The Lance Todd Trophy is a trophy in rugby league, awarded to the annual Challenge Cup Final's man of the match. Introduced in 1945–46, the trophy was named in memory of Lance Todd, the New Zealand-born player and administrator, who was killed in ...

as ''Man of the Match'' in the 2003

Challenge Cup The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involves am ...

Final against

. He was also named in the 2003 Super League Dream Team at fullback. Connolly was regarded as one of the premier British centres of his generation and appeared 31 times for the national side excelling in the defensive side of the game, although his try scoring record was very modest at this level.

Wigan, Widnes and Munster

In 2004, Connolly was released by Leeds, and returned for a short spell at Wigan for whom he played 17 games during the 2004 season. Released at the end of the season, although given the option of a return to rugby union with Orrell, he instead signed a one-year deal with

Widnes Widnes ( ) is an Industrial city, industrial town in the Borough of Halton, Cheshire, England, which at the 2011 United Kingdom census, 2011 census had a population of 61,464. Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, it is on t ...

for the 2005 season. Following the club's relegation that season, Connolly was released, and signed a short-term deal to return to rugby union with

References

External links

Gary Connolly St Helens Career Page
on the Saints Heritage Society Website.
Gary Connolly Statistics at wigan.rlfans.com
*(archived by web.archive.org
Canterbury Bulldogs profile2001 Ashes profile

Munster Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Connolly, Gary 1971 births Living people Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs players England national rugby league team players English people of Irish descent English rugby league players English rugby union players Great Britain national rugby league team players Harlequin F.C. players Ireland national rugby league team players Lancashire rugby league team players Lance Todd Trophy winners Leeds Rhinos players Munster Rugby players Orrell R.U.F.C. players Rugby league centres Rugby league fullbacks Rugby league players from St Helens, Merseyside Rugby union centres Rugby union players from St Helens, Merseyside St Helens R.F.C. players Widnes Vikings players Wigan Warriors players