World Cup dream all but over for Gavin Henson

Gavin Henson is facing the brutally realistic prospect of never playing in a Rugby World Cup.

The Wales centre has undergone surgery on a dislocated bone in his right wrist suffered during Saturday's World Cup warm-up victory over England.

He will be sidelined for six to eight weeks and by the time Henson regains full fitness, it is possible Wales could be on their way home from New Zealand.

Wales coach Warren Gatland names a 30-man World Cup squad a week today. If, as seems certain, he is not selected, then Henson could only feature in the tournament by replacing an injured player.

Henson was overlooked by then Wales coach Steve Hansen for the 2003 World Cup, and then failed to recover in time from injuries four years later. When the 2015 competition comes around, he will be 33.

"Gavin underwent surgery this morning (Sunday] at the Vale Hospital to correct the dislocation to a bone in his right wrist," said Prav Mathema, the Welsh Rugby Union's national medical performance manager.

"He has been given a return to play time of six to eight weeks which, while ruling him out of selection for the initial World Cup squad, could see him available to the coaches while we are still in the pool stages of the tournament.

"With that fact in mind, Gavin will remain under the care of the Wales national squad medical staff in order to ensure that he returns to fitness at the earliest opportunity in case the coaches need to call him out to New Zealand for any reason. Wales kick off their campaign against world champions South Africa in Wellington on 11 September, followed by appointments with Samoa, Namibia and Fiji.

If Wales qualify from their group, the chances are they will face tournament second-favourites Australia at the quarter-final stage.

Henson, who is currently without a club after spells at Saracens and Toulon last season, impressed during his 30 minutes on the pitch as Wales overcame England 19-9 in Cardiff.

He had said beforehand he felt he needed to do something "pretty special" to make Gatland's squad, but injury has now dashed those hopes.

Speaking immediately after the match, Henson's midfield partner Jamie Roberts said: "He played well today. He had a couple of good hits in defence and a couple of nice touches on the ball."

And Gatland added: "I thought Gav looked great while he was on the pitch. He showed a few nice touches and squared a few people up to send players clear."

The injury is another career dip for Henson, who spent almost two years out of the sport as he came to terms with repeated fitness blows.

During that time, he embarked on a television career, taking part in programmes such as the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing, and there were question marks over whether he had lost his rugby appetite.But he participated in two Wales training camps in Poland last month, and looked to have done enough to secure his World Cup place until injury struck again.

Henson's absence is the latest blow for Gatland ahead of departure to New Zealand in just 17 days' time.

Scarlets wing Morgan Stoddart broke his leg against England at Twickenham eight days ago, while last season's Wales skipper - hooker Matthew Rees - is battling to overcome a neck problem. Gatland could thrust 20-year-old Scott Williams into his midfield plans, but Henson will be a significant loss, given his versatility as a centre, full-back or fly-half.

Wales, meanwhile, say that fly-half Rhys Priestland, who also left the pitch early on Saturday - a thigh injury meant he did not re-appear for the second half - will be re-assessed today. But both full-back Lee Byrne and wing Leigh Halfpenny have been declared fully fit and in contention for selection against Argentina in the final World Cup warm-up game next Saturday.

Stephen Jones, Ryan Jones and Gethin Jenkins, who all have calf muscle problems, will join Priestland in reporting for injury assessment this morning, when further details about their progress will be established.

Wales have stated that Rees is under "continuous assessment", and they currently have nothing further to report regarding his recovery.