Earls Sidelined For Up To Eight Weeks

Versatile back Keith Earls looks set to miss Ireland’s entire RBS 6 Nations campaign after it was confirmed that he suffered a medial knee ligament injury during Munster’s Heineken Cup round 6 victory over Edinburgh.

A statement from Munster Rugby revealed that Keith Earls has been ruled out for approximately six to eigh weeks after sustaining medial ligament damage to his left knee.

Earls was scheduled to join his Ireland colleagues in camp on Sunday evening after Munster’s bonus point success over the Scots in Limerick.

But after picking up the knee injury, he was replaced by the Munster management after 25 minutes and consequently did not travel to Carton House.

Earls, who signed a two-year IRFU contract this week to stay with his native province, underwent a scan on Monday before meeting with the specialist yesterday in Dublin where the injury prognosis was confirmed.