Ulster's preparations for the new season were dealt a major blow this morning with the news that Tommy Bowe could miss the first three months of the campaign with a wrist injury.
The Ireland international is due to have exploratory surgery on the problem today amid concerns he has damaged ligaments in the same hand he injured during the British and Irish Lions tour of Australia.
Bowe broke a bone in his hand playing against the Queensland Reds but recovered ahead of schedule to play in both the second and third tests against the Wallabies.
It today's surgery reveals serious ligament damage, the Ulster winger is looking at spending around 12 weeks on the sidelines.
Ulster open their Rabo Pro12 campaign against the Dragons on September 6th and face the Leicester Tigers and Montpellier in the opening two rounds of the Heineken Cup at the start of October.
