Shane Horgan ruled out of Rugby World Cup

Irish veteran Shane Horgan's hopes of forcing his way back into Ireland's World Cup squad after being ruled out of the entire build-up to the tournament.

The winger has had somewhat of a resurgence this season, scoring nine tries in 26 appearances for Leinster, as well as helping the side to their second Heineken Cup title after starting in the 33-22 final victory over Northampton. Those betting sports money would have been impressed by his efforts.

Horgan's improved form saw him being touted by many as an outside bet to make the squad after losing his place in recent years but has now been told he faces surgery on his knee. This means he won't be featuring in the live betting odds any time soon.

The winger, known as 'Shaggy' within the game due to his resemblance to the Scooby-Doo character is not the only player to miss out on selection due to injury with Ulster duo Ian Humphreys and Nevin Spence who both miss out with shoulder injuries.

"The only players unavailable for selection are Shane Horgan, Ian Humphreys and Nevin Spence, who all had to undergo surgery on long-standing injuries," the IRFU said in a statement.

"The rehabilitation period is such that all three players will not be able to take part in the World Cup conditioning schedule to enable them to build up the required fitness levels."

With Horgan being out of the international limelight for such an extended period of time, coach Declan Kidney is understood to have wanted to test his ability before making a final decision but his inability to feature in the warm-up games has now ruled the player out as Ireland look to fine tune their squad ahead of the game's showpiece event that starts in New Zealand on 9th September.