Davies facing lengthy lay-off

Wales centre Jonathan Davies has been ruled out of next year’s Six Nations after undergoing surgery following the World Cup. The 31-year-old picked up the injury as he set up Josh Adams for a crucial try in the 29-17 victory over Fiji on October 9. Davies sat out the final pool encounter with Uruguay and the quarter-final triumph over France in Chofu before returning to face South Africa and New Zealand. He has since undergone surgery on his knee and is set to be on the sidelines for around six months. That rules him out of contention for Wales’ 2020 Six Nations campaign, which gets underway against Italy in Cardiff on February 1. Scarlets team-mate Rhys Patchell is also a doubt for the 21st edition of the competition due to a shoulder injury. Patchell will be out for between 12 and 16 weeks and his potential absence leaves new head coach Wayne Pivac short on options at fly-half. Fellow number 10 Gareth Anscombe missed the World Cup with a knee injury and has also been ruled out of the Six Nations.