Ahead of Sunday's big Wear-Tyne derby against Newcastle United at the Stadium of Light, Connolly spoke to Tribalfootball.com about his former club's progress.
He said, "They have surprised me. I think they have surprised everyone. But, you know, as you see, look, they've got terrific home fans. They signed very well. I know their results towards the end of the season weren't great, but they had had a good season up to those last five.
"And his (manager Regis Le Bris) decision to rest players leading into that playoff was vindicated right? So they have surprised people because history would tell you the last couple of seasons those teams that have got up are the ones to go down, so you know to have 23 points on the board so far is incredible."
On the progress of Brian Brobbey, who arrived in the summer from Ajax, Connolly feels the Dutchman and Wilson Isidor can complement eachother.
He added, "I think the addition of Brobbey means if they needed to go and play two up front, I think he's (Le Bris) quite content and happy that those two would go and do well, him and Isidore.
"If not, they could just play one. Coming off the bench, I know Brobbey would probably want to play and he has that demeanour that he always wants to play.
"The manager, he seems like a terrific manager. He's more than able to manage that squad and they've done very well."
- David Connolly was speaking to Tribalfootball on behalf of Casino.org where you can finding online casino sites