Ireland star Mack Hansen is set to sit out this year's Six Nations as he faces a recovery period of up to four months.
The Connacht player is currently undergoing surgery for a dislocated shoulder sustained during the victory against Munster in the United Rugby Championship on New Year's Day, as confirmed by the province.
The injury comes just after the 25-year-old had suffered two foot injuries this season - the first at the tail end of the Rugby World Cup - but this development will leave him sidelined for most of the remainder of the campaign.
Speaking about his star's injury, Connacht head coach Pete Wilkins said,"It's disappointing for us to lose Mack for such a period of time.
"Obviously there'll be a knock-on effect to the Irish campaign in the Six Nations and most of all disappointment for Mack.
"He was starting to find some form and rhythm having been a little bit stop-start since the World Cup.
"Everyone loses out in that sense and the fans will miss watching him play as well so it's up to us to fill that gap and other players get a chance to step up.
"He's not lost his sense of humour, thankfully, he was in with us at the end of last week so very much around the place albeit in a sling.
"He's gone off for surgery today. We've had lots of contact with him. It's about trying to keep his spirits up. The key thing is to get this surgery and these intitial couple of days out of the way and you can start on that rehab campaign.
"He's had a shoulder injury before, a similar injury when he was at Brumbies in Australia so although that's unfortunate to have it twice , at the same time he's familiar with the surgical process, familiar with rehab and that length of time." The coach concluded.
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