England wing sensation Immanuel Feyi-Waboso will reportedly be ruled out for the entire Six Nations campaign after undergoing surgery for a dislocated shoulder.
The 22-year-old has become a starter who has enjoyed a huge rise over the last 12 months under Steve Borthwick, but he will now be without two members of his regular defence.
The Exeter star dislocated his shoulder in last month’s defeat to Sale and was weighing whether to go under the knife knowing it would hinder his plans to compete in the Six Nations.
The typical recovery time is between 10 and 12 weeks, meaning he will miss England’s opener in Ireland on February 1 until the final day of the competition when they play Wales in Cardiff on March 15.
Exeter’s director of rugby Rob Baxter had initially hoped that Fay-Waboso would not be sidelined for a long period of time, but the Daily Mail claimed the decision was made to opt for surgery after consultation with England.
Feyi-Waboso was one of 17 players to sign enhanced contracts in October. This means Borthwick has the final say on sports science and injury matters.
Feyi-Waboso, who has been nominated for the World Rugby Breakthrough Player of the Year award, made his debut for England in last year’s Six Nations after representing Wales at youth level.
There was initially a feeling that the winger could recover without surgery, suiting both the player and England, but that has since been ruled out and Pay-Waboso will be ruled out until at least April.
The second blow for Feyi-Waboso is that he can no longer impress British and Irish Lions manager Andy Farrell in hopes of earning a place in the squad.
Farrell would have been hoping to see the youngster star in this year’s Six Nations before considering him for Australia this summer.
Pay-Waboso now features alongside Northampton full-back George Furbank after suffering a broken arm in the Champions Cup win over the Bulls, which will rule him out from at least the start of the campaign.
Ollie Sleightholme was a late withdrawal from Northampton’s squad ahead of Sunday’s win over Bath and he and Tommy Freeman are likely candidates to replace Feyi-Waboso and Furbank.
One of Bristol’s star wings of the Premier League season and England youngster Gabriel Ibitoye has also been ruled out for six weeks with a leg injury. Will Muir also limped off Bath’s 35-34 loss to Northampton on Sunday due to a hamstring problem.
