ENGLAND have been hit by ANOTHER Six Nations injury curse.
Bath superstar Semesa Rokoduguni is booked in for an operation next week to fix a shoulder problem.
And sources predict the winger will be out for at least two months, which means he will miss the start of the Red Rose’s title defence against Italy on February 3.
The Fiji-born flier joins Lions ace Maro Itoje and Leicester prop Ellis Genge in the treatment room.
Roko, 30, will also miss Bath’s huge Champions Cup showdown with three-time winners Toulon in the south of France tomorrow.
Despite his superb Premiership and European form, the Army tank driver had struggled to establish himself under England boss Eddie Jones.
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But Roko is now a serious World Cup contender having stepped off the bench twice to score in the autumn internationals against Argentina and Samoa.
His Bath team-mate Anthony Watson, Tigers speedster Jonny May and Exeter Chiefs Premiership winner Jack Nowell, as well as Wasps utility back Elliot Daly, are all fit for the huge 2018 Six Nations.
Aussie gaffer Jones had more good news with world- class No8 Billy Vunipola making a better-than-expected recovery at Saracens.
MAR-OH NO England star Maro Itoje could miss start of 6 Nations after cheekbone fracture scare
Jones, away on a 2019 recce mission in Japan, is waiting on an update for crocked second-row star Itoje, 23, who had extra scans on his fractured jaw.
While his Sarries team-mates prepare for Sunday’s rerun of last year’s Champions Cup final with Clermont, Itoje was getting a second opinion yesterday after surgery to fix his face.
Jones expects better news from Worcester regarding centre Ben Te’o, who has an ankle injury.
Te’o, 30, is likely to be out of a protective boot in the New Year and mount his own Six Nations charge.
Eddie Jones on how he manages England rugby team talksncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTErKynZpOke7a3jqynqKqkZL%2B2s8GyrKehn6N8dnyYa2lqbl%2Bosq6x0ppkq6ebpLG2s9SnoGarmKTCrbDEq2SoqJWnrrW1zqdknqaXoa6vsIysoLFlnpbBqrvNrGY%3D