Hugo Keenan will not see action for Leinster United Rugby Championship game against Connacht in Galway on Saturday [17:30 GMT] but the news is positive for the Ireland international, who is battling back from injury.
Keenan scored the winning try for the British and Irish Lions in their second Test against Australia to seal the series win last summer and underwent hip surgery upon his return home.
The 29-year-old full-back has yet to feature for club or country since, but has stepped up his on-field training with Leinster alongside Jamie Osbourne, who has been out with a shoulder injury sustained during Ireland’s win over Japan in November.
Both are close to a return to action, which will be good news for Ireland head coach Andy Farrell, who is due to announce his squad for the Six Nations on Wednesday ahead of the opening game away to France on 5 February.
Elsewhere, Ciaran Frawley and Jack Conan will be available this week as they return to training, while Jimmy O’Brien (hamstring), Robbie Henshaw (knee), Tommy O’Brien (calf) and Tadhg Furlong (calf) will be assessed late in the week.
There are no further updates on Ryan Baird, Jordan Larmour, Paddy McCarthy, Andrew Porter and Rabah Slimani.