Rugby:Munster confirmed tonight that backrow Niall Ronan will take no further part in rugby this season after a scan showed he damaged a cruciate ligament in the first half of last Saturday's Heineken Cup victory over Castres.

The 29-year-old will undergo an operation on the injury on February 3rd and look to resume playing next season.

Munster have suffered a long list of injuries, not least in the backrow, where Ronan is the third openside sidelined after David Wallace and Tommy O’Donnell. Just last week Denis Leamy was ruled out for four months with a hip injury.