Shanklin picked up the injury on domestic duty with the Blues, and was also ruled out of the Test matches on the 2005 Lions tour due to a knee injury. The 63-times capped centre is hopeful of a September return, in time for Wales's autumn series games against New Zealand, Australia, Argentina and Samoa.

"I'm not injury-prone, I just seem to get injured every four years," he told The Western Mail. "I really don't think of myself as an unlucky player. In fact, it's the opposite because I have my dream job as a professional rugby player and I'm not going to start complaining.

"Everyone gets injured and you've got no control over when it happens. I'm a rugby fan first and foremost, so I watched all the Lions games and was texting the Wales boys every day to find out what was going on behind the scenes and to get all the gossip. Some players want to get away from the game completely when they're injured, but not me. If I can't play, I'll happily support."

Evans picked up the injury while training with Hawke's Bay, and scans later revealed a small prolapsed disc. All Black doctor Deb Robinson said that it was too early to put a date on Evans' recovery time.

"It's a case of him having his surgery and recovering from that first. Then he will go through his rehabilitation and we will take it from there," she said.

"Last season we won the Top 14 and I think the club is getting mentally stronger," he told Midi Olympique. If we qualify for the Heineken Cup quarter-final or semi-finals we might be able to host a game in Barcelona. In the south of the Catalan region people are very interested in the Heineken Cup in particular because of their soccer culture and the importance placed in the European Cups."