Dan Sheehan set for lengthy spell on sidelines after discovering extent of injury

A big loss

Sheehan was involved in the first test of the South Africa tour as Andy Farrell's men fell to a 27-20 defeat in Pretoria.

The Hooker suffered the injury 27 minutes into the game while tackling second row Eben Etzebeth and managed to limp his way through to half time aided by heaving strapping on his knee before being replaced by Rónan Kelleher after the break.

He then watched on from the second half on a stationary bike before Farrell confirmed the 25-year-old would be a doubt for the second test match in Durban.

Extent of Sheehan injury revealed

At first it looked like it was a precautionary decision to remove Sheehan however further reports have claimed the extent of the injury is far more severe.

RTÉ stated that Sheehan left the Ireland camp before they departed for Johannesburg on Sunday and if the injury is in fact an ACL, the hooker will almost certainly be out for the rest of the year and may even be a doubt to feature in next year's Six Nations.

Who will replace Sheehan?

it's almost certain that his half time replacement Kelleher will start from the off this weekend and Ulster's Rob Herring will be promoted to the match day squad.

There seems to be a relaxed mood from the Ireland camp when it comes to calling up a replacement.

Ireland's next game against the world champions is on Saturday, with kick off at 16:00pm time and available to watch on Sky Sports.