And then perhaps the worst blow of all, the news that the injury suffered by Christian Cullen at The Arms Park would rule him out of action for the remainder of the season.

Cullen injured his left shoulder towards the end of the opening half and an MRI scan on Monday showed that he had torn ligaments.

With less than a month to go before they face Biarritz in the Heineken Cup quarter final Munster find themselves shorn of their most potent attacking player.

They are allowed add players to the squad for the knock-out stages of the competition but with the Super 12 in full flow the options open to coach Alan Gaffney of bringing in an overseas player is hardly a feasible one.

Deadline for registration of additional players is Thursday next March 10th.