Will Addison's injury misery continued on Monday, with Ulster confirming the versatile back had suffered a fractured leg.
The 29-year old was stretched off in the 46th minute of Friday night's United Rugby Championship win over the Emirates Lions at Kingspan Stadium.
Dan McFarland confirmed the severity of Addison's injury ahead of this week's clash with Connacht.
"Will's got a fracture to his lower leg," the Ulster head coach revealed.
"He had surgery yesterday at the Royal Victoria hospital to stabilise that fracture. The surgery went well and he's recuperating.
"It's way too early to [set a return date]."
Addison had only returned from 15-months on the sidelines in April. He'd been hampered by separate back and calf problems.
His return to form looked set to win him a place in Andy Farrell's squad for next month's autumn internationals, having been named in a training squad ahead of the games with Japan, New Zealand and Argentina.
Addison had made a successful return to the international fold in the summer, coming off the bench in the 71-10 win over the United States at the Aviva Stadium.
He now looks unlikely to play again until well into the new year.
Meanwhile, McFarland wasn't giving away as much information regarding Iain Henderson's fitness.
The Lions lock is out with a thumb injury, with his coach only offering "We'll just see how it goes" when asked if Henderson would be fit for the games at the Aviva.
Concern over Sexton fitness ahead of autumn internationals
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
