Luckless Olding Set For Nine Month Lay-Off

Stuart Olding is set to be out of rugby for nine months after suffering a serious knee injury during Ulster’s GUINNESS PRO12 bonus point win over Cardiff Blues last Friday night.

A statement from Ulster Rugby said: “An MRI scan has confirmed that Stuart (Olding) has an ACL injury in his right knee. He will require surgery and will be out of rugby for up to nine months.”

It rules the luckless Olding out of Ulster’s GUINNESS PRO12 run-in and ends his hopes of making Ireland’s squad for the Rugby World Cup later this year.

This latest setback comes on the back of him missing the recent RBS 6 Nations campaign due to the elbow injury he sustained against Toulon in January.

The 22-year-old suffered a similar knee injury in 2013 when he ruptured his ACL when playing for Ulster Ravens and missed most of the 2013/14 season. He returned to score a try in Ireland’s GUINNESS Series victory over Georgia last November.

Meanwhile, Ulster also revealed that scrum half Ruan Pienaar sustained a ‘stinger’ to his shoulder against Cardiff. He suffered soft tissue bruising, but is expected to be available for Saturday week’s PRO12 derby match against Connacht.