Westmeath's Aoife Connolly keen to add to scoring haul ahead of TG4 All-Ireland Intermediate quarter-final against Clare

Whatever might unfold for her against Clare in Sunday's TG4 All-Ireland intermediate quarter-final at Cusack Park (throw-in 2pm), Westmeath's Aoife Connolly has already left an indelible mark on the current inter-county season.

In 12 appearances across a variety of competitions, the Garrycastle ace has amassed an astonishing tally of 10-50 for the Lake County.

Her best individual haul came against Louth in a championship clash in Ballinlough on 13 May, when she registered 1-10 to help Westmeath defeat their opponents on a score of 3-17 to 1-11. Included amongst this final total was a '45’ that garnered 0-02 for her side.

She became the first player from the midlands outfit to do so at county level since the two-point rule was introduced by the LGFA in 2020 and she repeated this feat during their 3-14 to 0-6 win over Longford in a Group 4 game at Glennon Brothers Pearse Park last Sunday week.

This was a significant score as it is believed that Connolly is the first ladies footballer to score two ‘45’s in the same season. This wasn’t something the 24-year-old was aware of until it was pointed out to her in the aftermath of the game, though she was pleased to match the efforts of those who had converted from this distance in recent years.

"I wasn’t aware of it at all. I had seen a couple of videos of girls doing it in the last year or two. I wasn’t really aware of the facts behind it or whether anybody had done it twice before. That was news to me, to be honest," Connolly acknowledged.

"I’ve never, ever scored one in practicing, so it was nice to get the first one against Louth. It’s a bit of a shock to myself and I’d say probably a few others. I was surprised to see it go over, but it definitely felt good anyway.

"I would have