Cian Healy may not be able to help Ireland defend their RBS 6 Nations crown after it emerged the prop has had to undergo surgery on a troublesome hamstring.
The 26-year-old, who appeared in all five of Ireland’s RBS 6 Nations fixtures earlier this year, sustained the injury during a somewhat innocuous incident in training during the week.
And Leinster head coach Matt O’Connor revealed Healy could require up to five months to recover from his latest setback, admitting his player’s hard luck is all part of the game.
“Cian strained his hamstring just running up the pitch, there was nothing in it,” said O’Connor.
“Unfortunately, the scans revealed he had torn it off the bone, which meant he needed surgery to repair it.
“He’ll be four or five months. It could happen to anybody but the reality is there aren’t many strong enough out there who could do that type of damage to themselves. He’ll be as good as he was before.
“It’s the nature of the game we play that blokes get injured. It’s a significant injury for a young guy. That’s what happens in professional sport and hopefully he’ll be back as good as new by the Six Nations.”
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