Mako Vunipola out of Six Nations

England prop Mako Vunipola will miss the rest of the Six Nations due to an ankle ligament injury.

The forward was replaced by Ben Moon early in the second half of a 44-8 thrashing of France at Twickenham on Sunday.

Vunipola, man of the match in England’s victory over Ireland the previous weekend, is expected to be out for 10 weeks, so he will also miss Saracens’ European Rugby Champions Cup quarter-final against Glasgow Warriors.

England head coach Eddie Jones said: “It is obviously very disappointing to lose Mako at this stage as he is an important player for us but it does provide an opportunity for the team to grow.”

The loss of Vunipola will leave a big void for Jones to fill in a potentially decisive showdown with Wales in Cardiff a week on Saturday.

Moon will be hoping to make a first Six Nations start in Cardiff, while Ellis Genge and Alec Hepburn are alternative options for Jones.

Vunipola missed England’s November internationals due to a calf injury and faces another spell on the sidelines just when he was back to his best.

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