Henson doubtful for Wales tour

Gavin Henson is likely to miss Wales' forthcoming two-match tour of South Africa after failing to respond to treatment for an ankle ligament injury.

Henson will undergo keyhole surgery this week and faces a "best case scenario" of four to six weeks out or even around 12 weeks should a full operation be required.

The 26-year-old sustained the injury during the Heineken Cup quarter-final defeat by Saracens earlier this month and after seeing an ankle specialist will have surgery on Wednesday.

A six-week lay-off would mean Henson missing the June 7 clash in Bloemfontein and June 14 in Pretoria, while he is certainly out of the Ospreys' three remaining Magners League fixtures.

Ospreys physio Chris Towers said: "Gavin's injury hasn't responded to treatment as anticipated and so he was routinely reviewed by an ankle specialist.

"In light of the ligament damage involved, the specialist felt that it was advisable at this stage to examine the potential for any instability of the joint. And in this instance, the only way to achieve this is to perform an arthroscopy and screen the ankle in theatre.

"The best case scenario will see Gavin sidelined for a further four to six weeks, with no further action needing to be taken.

"However, if the examination reveals clinical instability then the plan will be to repair the ligament at that time, which would be likely to sideline Gavin for approximately 12 weeks.

"It is impossible to say what the outcome will be until the specialist has had a chance to assess the ankle fully, so it would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this moment."