Under the knife.

Ulster lock Iain Henderson looks set to miss a chunk of Ireland’s Six Nations campaign next year after undergoing surgery on a to repair a torn ligament in his thumb.

The British and Irish Lion will be out of action for approximately 10 weeks, ruling him out of Ireland’s games against England, Scotland and Italy at the very least.

Henderson’s absence means James Ryan, Devin Toner and Tadhg Beirne will likely be the three locks in the matchday squad for the opener against England on February 2nd.

In a further blow for Ulster Matthew Rea sustained a thumb fracture playing for Ballymena RFC on Saturday and had surgery today (Monday). He is expected to be sidelined for 8-10 weeks.