Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt could be forced to plan the remainder of the Six Nations campaign without Leinster and Ireland stalwart Rob Kearney following the news that the fullback’s arm injury suffered during Ireland’s trouncing of Italy on Saturday is worse than first thought.

The Leinster man damaged his bicep towards the end of the match in Rome and was forced to leave the field early. Following the game head coach Joe Schmidt was confident that it was merely a hard knock and the 30-year-old would bounce back quickly.

It is now being reported by the Irish Independent that the damage could be more significant than initially thought and that Kearney may require surgery, thus threatening to end his involvement in the championship.

If he is indeed set to go under the knife, the expectation would be that Simon Zebo would slot into the fullback position. With a wealth of experience playing at 15 for Munster, he is a more than capable replacement for the injury-prone Kearney.

For the Leinster man it is yet another unfortunate injury set-back. Having suffered a number of knee and arm injuries in recent seasons, his time in the green shirt has been curtailed of late.

In more positive news, Munster captain Peter O’Mahony continues is recovery from a leg injury and is back training with Munster. Similarly, Robbie Henshaw is recovering well from a dead leg he picked up in the romp in Rome and is set to return to training this week.

Gary Brennan, Pundit Arena

This week’s edition of The Oval Office, we speak with Niall Ronan, David Arnott and talk all things Six Nations.

https://soundcloud.com/punditarenarugby/we-speak-to-niall-ronan-david-arnott-and-talk-all-things-six-nations

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