IT HAS BEEN a day of bad health reports all-round for northern hemisphere teams as Rhys Ruddock joins Manu Tuilagi and Gael Fickou in likely being ruled out for the rest of the season.

Ruddock broke his arm against Harlequins in the Champions Cup back in December, which ruled him out of Six Nations contention after an autumn spent in the Irish team.

And frustratingly for the flanker, despite having returned to provincial action during the tournament, his initial injury hasn’t cleared and Leinster forwards coach Leo Cullen says he is probably out for the rest of this campaign.

And with the international emergence of Jordi Murphy and Tommy O’Donnell during the Six Nations, it will be tough for Ruddock to force himself into Joe Schmidt’s World Cup squad, especially with Ulster flanker Chris Henry returning from injury too.

“Rhys had an issue with his arm,” Cullen said.

“He’s been managed, unfortunately he is still with that. It’s from the broken arm and it’s not healing properly. He’s struggling with that. He’s out of the mix. He’s it getting redone (another operation). He will get a plate.”

Cullen also confirmed that Eoin Reddan took a blow to the head against Glasgow but was optimistic about the scrum-half’s involvement in the Champions Cup quarter-final against Bath at the Aviva Stadium next Saturday.

Reddan was removed from the field early in Leinster's 34-34 draw with Glasgow. Ryan Byrne / INPHO Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO

And despite missing Friday’s draw with a hamstring injury, Cullen also expects Kane Douglas to be available for selection.

The tie with Glasgow makes it difficult for Leinster to make the Pro12 top four and they will have to win their four remaining games and hope other results go there way. Cullen acknowledged that Leinster can’t afford to drop any more points.

“I had a full array of emotions on Friday,” Cullen said.

“We need to keep winning really. I saw a quote, it is cup finals. We can’t really afford to lose much. We will be dependent on others. Obviously there are some of those teams in the top four will be playing against each other, so points will be dropped, somewhere along the way. It is just important that we don’t drop any more points.”

But Europe is first up for Leinster before they resume league action and Cullen stressed that their domestic campaign had been ‘parked’ for this week as they try to book a place in the inaugural Champions Cup semi-finals. The Bath backline is full of internationals like George Ford, Jonathan Joseph and Anthony Watson while they also have one of the game’s most potent poachers at number seven in Francois Louw.

He is a coach now rather than a player but Cullen was obviously excited about Leinster’s first home knockout game in the European Cup since April 2012.

“It is such a big occasion and we really want everyone to try and get behind the team on what is a huge occasion,” Cullen said.

“There is so much at stake. Slightly new competition, but it’s a competition that we have so many fond memories of in recent years and we want to continue those memories. There are new players coming through all the time and everyone wants to have that success in this tournament. It’s why everyone does the work. I can’t wait for Saturday at 15.15. Because there is such a long lead in for a lot of us into this game, because the quarter-final draw was back in the middle of January, so this has been on our minds for a long, long time. It is getting closer and closer, so I can’t wait for it.”

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