Ulster confirm Ben Moxham's season is over

Ulster Rugby have been dealt a major blow ahead of their upcoming Investec Champions Cup clash against Bordeaux Bègles, with the confirmation that wing Ben Moxham will miss the remainder of the season due to an ACL injury.

The 23-year-old sustained the injury to his right knee during Ulster’s recent United Rugby Championship defeat to Leinster. He was ruled out of the province’s  61-21 loss to Toulouse on Sunday, and after undergoing initial assessments, it has been confirmed that he requires surgery to repair the damage, with the operation scheduled for next week.

The anticipated recovery timeline is approximately nine months, ruling him out of any further action for the 2023/24 season.

In a more positive development, scrum-half John Cooney has returned to team training after recovering from a hamstring issue that ruled him out of the loss to the European champions. His fitness will be closely monitored over the coming days to determine his availability for selection against Bordeaux at the Kingspan Stadium.

Ulster have also had several other players sidelined with injuries, including Stewart Moore and Ben Carson, who both sustained “soft tissue contusions” in Sunday’s defeat. Their fitness will be monitored this week.

Elsewhere in the squad, Robert Baloucoune (calf), Jake Flannery (ankle), Jacob Stockdale (hamstring), Ethan McIlroy (ankle), Sean Reffell (ankle), James Hume (knee), Callum Reid (knee), and Tom Stewart (ankle) remain unavailable.

Though Ulster’s chances of victory at the Stade Ernest-Wallon were slim, the heavy scoreline has left them at the bottom of Pool A, meaning they will have to try to resolve their negative points difference in their remaining three fixtures with Bordeaux, Leicester Tigers and Exeter Chiefs.