Ringrose blow for Ireland

Leinster senior coach Stuart Lancaster has confirmed that Garry Ringrose will be sidelined for the opening rounds of the Six Nations having undergone ankle surgery.

Meanwhile, James Tracy and Adam Byrne will also miss Sunday's Champions Cup clash with Glasgow Warriors.

Commenting on Ringrose's latest injury and the number of weeks he will be sidelined for, Stuart Lancaster said: "Disappointing for the team and more so for Garry, you know how hard he worked to get back fit (following shoulder surgery in July).

"It (syndesmosis disruption) is one of those injuries that is uncontrollable and he's pretty philosophical about it, so he will be back in a few weeks and we will take it from there. It is a five to six week injury, he's had the operation and is recovering.

"He won't play his next two games and then we have a couple of weeks off, so he'll get back into the PRO14 but will still have a part to play if selected for the Six Nations, I'm sure. He was really beginning to find his feet again. It was just rotten luck."

Meanwhile, front-row Tracy suffered a dislocated elbow against Ulster and will see a specialist later this week to determine the full extent of that injury.

Wing Adam Byrne is also out for the foreseeable future having had a flare up of his knee issue and he will now see a specialist later this week before further information will be available.

In further injury news, Tadhg Furlong was withdrawn at half-time against Ulster for a head injury assessment and, as a result, he has entered the return-to-play protocols. To date, the tighthead prop has progressed well and has passed HIA3 and is making good progress through the protocols, but he will be further assessed through to the end of the process.

Furlong was also treated in the first half for a hyper extension of his left elbow and he will be further assessed for that injury as the week progresses.

There was good news for Rory O'Loughlin (return-to-play protocols), Dan Leavy (back) and Richardt Strauss (back), all of whom returned to full training on Wednesday. Lancaster also confirmed that Joey Carbery has now returned fully to the rugby training programme.

James Ryan is still being assessed for an ankle injury, as is Sean O'Brien who is visiting a specialist regarding his hip tightness. Lancaster said of O'Brien: "I don't think the position has really changed. It's a niggly hip injury which is a pretty important part of a back-rower's anatomy and if he's struggling then we need to get it sorted for him really."