Ireland and Munster Six Nations Grand Slam winning winger Keith Earls will miss the province's Champions Cup clash with Toulon through injury.
Earls left the field six minutes from the end of their 24-15 win over England at Twickenham last week and his province confirmed he is in a battle to get any rugby in at the end of the season.
"It has been confirmed that the winger, who sustained knee ligament damage in Twickenham last Saturday, will not be available for approximately six weeks, ruling him out of the Champions Cup quarter final against Toulon on March 31," the province said.
That length of time means Earls will also miss a potential Champions Cup semifinal in five weeks, should they overcome Toulon.
He is also set to miss PRO14 games against Southern Kings, Cheetahs and Ulster Rugby, while he faces a race against time to be back for a likely quarterfinal in the PRO14 in May, ahead of Ireland's tour of Australia in the summer.