Welsh winger Shane Williams is out for 10 weeks with shoulder injury
British and Irish Lion Shane Williams will not play for at least 10 weeks as the Welsh winger dislocated his shoulder in his team’s 25-29 defeat to South Africa on Saturday 13 November.
The 33-year-old sustained the injury after a strong tackle by South African centre Francois Steyn.
The news will come as a blow to Wales and the Ospreys who were hopeful that the injury was not so serious.
Speaking to reporters, Wales’ physiotherapist Mark Davies said, "A scan has revealed that Shane did, as was thought, dislocate his shoulder, before it immediately moved back into place.
"He will now undergo exploratory surgery in the next 48 hours to assess the full extent of the damage caused by the dislocation, but we know he will be out of action now for a minimum of 10 weeks,” added Davies.
Williams will miss the remaining matches against Fiji on Friday 19 November and the final Test match of the Autumn Internationals against New Zealand on Saturday 27 November.
The player will also miss the remaining matches for the Ospreys in their Heineken Cup group.
The club must face Munster home and away, as well as London Irish and Toulon. Their task to qualify into the knock-out stages of the competition appears to be increasingly difficult.
The wing will also miss two derby matches against the Scarlets and the Cardiff Blues in the Magners League.
Chris Czekaj is expected to replace Williams for the match against Fiji and a strong performance could give him the opportunity to start against the All Blacks.
Czekaj will face a tough challenge filling in for Williams who is a key player for Wales. His speed and attacking ability will be sorely missed against the All Blacks.
Williams will return to the Ospreys after his operation and will look to recover for the Six Nations next year.
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