FORMER IRELAND U20 star Ciaran Gaffney underwent surgery on his neck in his native Galway after suffering an injury in Zebre’s win over Connacht on Friday.

Source: Bryan Keane/INPHO

The Zebre fullback, a product of the Connacht academy, was stretchered off after just seven minutes of his return to the Sportsground. He was found to have suffered a lesion to vertebrae c5 / c6.

Gaffney makes a break against the Kings. Source: Richard Huggard/INPHO

A statement from the Italian club says that a vertebral stabilisation intervention was performed on the 22-year-old at University Hospital Galway yesterday.

Gaffney will remain in Ireland to continue his rehabilitation.