Ulster and Ireland prop Tom O'Toole has been hit with a six-match ban, which rules him out of the opening two games of the Guinness Six Nations.
O’Toole was sent off during Ulster's URC defeat to Munster before Christmas for "dangerous play" after making contact with Alex Nankivell at a ruck.
Law 9.20e states "a player must not drop their weight onto an opponent or target the lower limbs".
The Munster centre suffered a hamstring injury in the incident and remains on the sidelines.
The 26-year-old Ireland front row accepted the red card at the disciplinary hearing with the judicial officer, Sheriff Kathrine Mackie of Scotland, deeming the incident worthy of a ten-week ban.
O’Toole was given 40% mitigation for his admission of foul play, immediate apology and again post-match.
However, because he also received a red card for foul play against Toulouse in 2022, full mitigation was not applied and he misses four Ulster, and two Ireland games, against England on 1 February and Scotland a week later.
The ban was backdated to include the win over Connacht on 28 December.
The URC added in a statement that interim Ireland head coach Simon Easterby confirmed that O’Toole, who played both tighthead and loosehead in three of the Autumn Nations Series games, would have had a "very good chance of being named in the match-day squad".
First-choice Ireland tighthead prop Tadhg Furlong of Leinster has been out of action since mid-October with a lower leg injury, however, back-up Finlay Bealham has been in good form for Connacht.
Leinster's Thomas Clarkson and Munster's Oli Jager are also options for Easterby.
Fixtures Tom O'Toole is unavailable for:
Connacht 7-17 Ulster, 28 December 2024, URC
Leicester v Ulster, 11 January 2025, Champions Cup
Ulster v Exeter Chiefs, 17 January 2025, Champions Cup
Ulster v Zebre Parma, 26 January 2025, URC
Ireland v England, 1 February 2025, Six Nations
Scotland v Ireland, 8 February 2025, Six Nations
