Northampton Saints will be without England international hooker Steve Thompson for their opening matches in the Heineken Cup.
Thompson damaged rib cartilage in the 23-6 home defeat by Sale on Saturday.
"He's popped a rib and he's definitely going to miss matches," said Saints coach Alan Solomons. "We'll have a better idea in the next 48 hours."
Northampton lifted the Heineken Cup in 2000 when they beat Munster by 9-8 in front of 68,441 fans at Twickenham.
But their hopes of making it a double have been dealt a blow with the news that England star Thompson will miss their trip north of the border to play Glasgow in Round 1 on Sunday (kick-off 13:00) before a tricky encounter the following week when the Scarlets visit Franklin's Gardens.
