Ready and waiting.

Joe Schmidt looks set to be without Sean O’Brien for a chunk, if not the entire Six Nations, with Leinster revealing today that the openside has been forced to undergo surgery to correct a hip problem.

The Ireland international missed the recent inter-pro wins over Munster, Connacht and Ulster with a tightness in the hip, but it had been hoped he would return in time for Leinster’s final two pool games of the Champions Cup.

“Seán O’Brien saw a specialist this week for the tightness in his hip as it hadn’t responded to treatment as we would have liked,” Leinster said in a statement

“As a result he had a small procedure and the target is to have O’Brien back available during the Six Nations window.”

A world class talent like Sean O’Brien can’t simply be replaced, but the good news for Ireland is the back-row is probably their strongest department in terms of depth.

Schmidt has a number of options at seven including Tommy O’Donnell and Dan Leavy, but the man who’s in the form of his life right now, will likely start against France and that’s Josh van der Flier.

34 tackles in one game. Thirty bloody four. Ireland are in safe hands.