Connacht sweating on foot injury for luckless Shayne Bolton

Connacht could be without Shayne Bolton for an extended period, with the winger set to see a specialist regarding his foot injury.

The Irish-qualified South African picked up the issue in the province's 28-14 defeat to the Bulls just over a week ago, while he sat out Saturday’s 43-12 win over Zebre in the EPCR Challenge Cup.

The province are yet to determine the extent of his injury, but the 24-year-old looks likely to miss the province's next few games.

It’s yet another setback for the promising wing, whose time at Connacht has been blighted by injuries, limiting him to just 19 appearances since joining in the summer of 2021.

Originally a centre, Bolton caught the eye last season when Pete Wilkins redeployed him on the wing, and that form was recognised by national coaching staff, who called him into the Emerging Ireland squad for the tour of South Africa earlier this season.

A bad laceration on his knee saw him miss out on that tour, and the Connacht defence coach Scott Fardy is hopeful this latest setback doesn’t sideline him long-term.

"So really disappointed for him around those injuries. I think he plays the game at such intensity that it obviously ends in a few injuries for him," Fardy (below) said, ahead of Sunday’s Challenge Cup away trip to Perpignan.

"He's been great, hasn't he? I think he's excellent, and he was on the edge of that Ireland squad as well in November before getting injured again.

"Really disappointed that he has that current injury, and hopefully it's not as bad as first thought.

"But hopefully we'll get him back sooner or later because he's such a crucial part of what we do in attack and defence."

In better news, second row Joe Joyce is available again after recovering from a foot injury of his own,