Quinlan faces surgery for shoulder injury

ALAN QUINLAN is facing the unpalatable prospect of an operation on his damaged shoulder, which would rule him out of the Heineken Cup and Six Nations.

The Munster and Irish flanker confirmed last night he is “leaning in that direction” following an initial consultation with a specialist in Dublin yesterday.

“It’s not certain yet and I will be having another opinion but I was prepared that I might have to face an operation and I will do so if necessary.”

Quinlan believes, though, that he could be back in action as soon as four months after surgery and has been encouraged by the success of such operations on players like Geordan Murphy, Colm McMahon and Australians Matt Burke and Stirling Mortlock in the past.

“Nothing has been decided so far but if I do have the operation it will be done as quickly as possible, probably within a couple of weeks,” he said.