London Irish stalwart Conor O'Shea will miss the start of next season after suffering a setback during his recovery from an ankle injury.

O'Shea (30) has been sidelined since breaking his ankle during the Exiles' Premiership clash against Gloucester more than five months ago. And the Ireland full back is now recuperating from further surgery which will delay any first-team return.

"Over recent weeks, as Conor tested his ankle to gauge how well it was recovering from the original fracture, complications arose that resulted in a further operation," said a club spokesman. "His ankle has been re-set, and will be in plaster for eight weeks. He will not be able to play competitive rugby until October at the earliest."

Ian Jones yesterday ended speculation about his Gloucester future - by announcing that he has retired from rugby. The legendary New Zealand All Black, who won 79 caps, has been at Kingsholm for two seasons. The 34-year-old will bid the sport farewell during the Barbarians' tour later this month which includes games against England, Wales and Scotland.

"I have had two really fantastic years at Gloucester, but I feel that now is the right time for me to finish and go back home with my family," he said.

Meanwhile defending Super 12 champions Canterbury Crusaders have left the prolific scoring All Black puthalf Andrew Mehrtens out of tomorrow night's match against the New South Wales Waratahs in Sydney New Zealand's greatest Test points scorer was a key man in the Crusaders' hat-trick of Super 12 titles and his fall from grace mirrors the team's demise this year. He started the season late after recovering from a groin injury but struggled for form on his return and was dropped for last week's 34-24 win over the Sharks in place of youngster Aaron Mauger.

If the 28-year-old Mehrtens, who has amassed 720 points in 48 Test matches since making his debut in 1995, remains on the fringes of the Crusaders line-up for the rest of the Super 12 series his brilliant international career could be in jeopardy.

New South Wales coach Bob Dwyer said Mauger deserved his place over Mehrtens. "I understand why they've selected him," the former Wallaby coach said. "They weren't getting what they wanted, so they had to try something else."