At club level he played with Fethard and was a member of the Tipperary senior teams as a dual player.
[1] Connolly started his playing career in unofficial juvenile competitions, street leagues and as a schoolboy.
Connolly spent 12 years with the Tipperary senior football team, however, it was as a member of the Tipperary senior hurling team that he won All-Ireland medals in 1958, 1961 and 1962.
[4][5] His enjoyed his last inter-county victory in 1966 as a member of the intermediate hurling team that won the All-Ireland title.
[6] Connolly died after a period of ill health on 4 July 2007, aged 71.