Ireland's hopes of catching France in the Six Nations title race have been dealt a heavy blow with the loss of Andrew Porter for the remainder of the championship.
Porter suffered an ankle injury in the first half of the nine-try victory over Italy at the Aviva Stadium last Sunday, and the IRFU have confirmed this morning that the Leinster prop has been ruled out of the remaining games against England and Scotland.
Following a scan the 26-year-old has returned to Leinster to recover, but it is not known how long he will be sidelined for.
