Iain Henderson's Six Nations ambitions could be in tatters after the second row was ruled out for "several weeks" with a finger injury.
Henderson had surgery on his thumb before Christmas but his rotten luck continued on Saturday when he suffered a fresh setback during the Heineken Champions Cup victory at Leicester Tigers.
Ulster confirmed today that the lock is facing a considerable spell on the sidelines, and he will definitely miss the Six Nations opener against England.
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It represents another headache for Joe Schmidt who called Connacht’s Quinn Roux into his panel earlier today in place of Tadhg Beirne.
Munster man Beirne is out of the Dublin clash with the English on 2 February and won't be back to face Scotland a week later either due to a knee injury he picked up in the bruising weekend win over Exeter.
Leinster duo James Ryan and Devin Toner along with Connacht's Ultan Dillane, last capped against Fiji in November 2017, are now the only specialist locks remaining from the original squad announcement, while Rhys Ruddock could also provide an option for Schmidt, who has brought the squad to Portugal for a warm-weather training camp.
Sean Reidy also injured his hand on Saturday and will have surgery later this week. Billy Burns sustained a concussion and will follow the return to play protocols, while Marcell Coetzee hurt his hamstring.
Dan McFarland's men host Benetton in the Pro14 on Friday night.
