Earls injury adds to Foley’s woe

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The news Anthony Foley was dreading for weeks yesterday finally landed in his in-tray.

Confirmation that Keith Earls required surgery on his knee problem and would be out of action for three to four months means that Foley will go into a whole series of vital fixtures — starting with the visit to the Aviva Stadium on Saturday — missing a player capable of injecting pace and penetration into a back division that has sadly lacked those key ingredients.