Fitzgerald out for up to six months

Ireland’s hopes of defending their Six Nations title have suffered a major blow with the news that Luke Fitzgerald faces four to six months on the sidelines. The IRFU have confirmed that the winger will have to undergo surgery tomorrow after he ruptured the ligaments in his left knee during yesterday’s draw against Australia. The Leinster and Lions star will now miss all of Ireland’s Six Nations’ defence, while he’ll also miss most of Leinster’s Heineken Cup defence. Meanwhile, Ireland coach Declan Kidney has drafted-in an extra 14 players for Saturday’s second November international against Fiji. Shane Horgan, who captained the Ireland A team during last week’s win over Tonga, is included, along with the likes of Tony Buckley, Gordon D’Arcy and Peter Stringer. The six day turnaround will mean a truncated preparation for the Irish players, which is the reason for the addition of a further 14 players to the 22-man squad that were on duty last weekend. Ireland Squad Additions (in addition to players available from match 22 v Australia): Tony Buckley, Gordon D’Arcy, John Fogarty, Chris Henry, Shane Horgan, Denis Hurley, Felix Jones, Sean O’Brien, Devin Toner, Andrew Trimble, Brett Wilkinson, Fergus McFadden, Kevin McLaughlin, Peter Stringer.