Ireland look set to be without Iain Henderson for the 2016 RBS 6 Nations after the hamstring tear the Ulsterman sustained on club duty last weekend.
Henderson went off after only five minutes of his province’s clash with Edinburgh last Friday night and the extent of his hamstring injury has now been confirmed.
And after the retirement of Paul O’Connell, the loss of Henderson – who is equally comfortable at flanker – will come as a real blow to Joe Schmidt’s side.
The two-time defending RBS 6 Nations champions are going for a hat-trick next year but it will have to be done without the 23-year-old Henderson who so impressed during the World Cup.
“Iain’s type of injury has historically been up to six months [out],” said Ulster director of rugby Les Kiss.
“At this stage it doesn’t look good in terms of the Six Nations.”
Kiss added: “He has a consultation later this week and the medics will work out the best form of surgery going forward.”
Fellow Ireland lock Dan Tuohy fractured an ankle during the same game and looks set to be on the sidelines for at least two months.
Centre Darren Cave also sustained a shoulder injury while Peter Nelson dislocated a foot to leave Ulster’s squad stretched right to the limit. Click here to view the complete 2016 RBS 6 Nations fixtures
