Ulster captain Henderson faces months out after hip surgery
Ulster captain Iain Henderson will miss the start of the new season and potentially several months of rugby after undergoing hip surgery this summer.
The 34-year-old lock, who has led the province since club legend Rory Best retired in 2019, successfully came through the procedure and is now beginning rehabilitation, Ulster Rugby confirmed (BBC Sport). No specific return date has been set.
It is not the first time Henderson has gone under the knife for a hip problem. In August 2020, similar surgery ruled him out for up to 10 weeks and ended his involvement in that season's run-in (Irish Times). On this occasion, the word from the province is "a number of months," suggesting a longer lay-off.
The news caps a frustrating spell for a player who has been a near-constant presence in Ulster's engine room since his debut in April 2012. Henderson sat out the end of last season through suspension after a red card against the Stormers in the United Rugby Championship — the cross-border competition that pits Irish, Welsh, Scottish, Italian and South African sides against each other. A disciplinary panel handed him a three-game ban, reduced from six by 50% mitigation, which included Ulster's Challenge Cup final defeat by Montpellier in Bilbao (BBC Sport; Ulster Rugby).
So the new campaign begins without him, and Ulster face a bedding-in period with several other forwards also sidelined. Bryn Ward (shoulder), Juarno Augustus (ankle) and Jude Postlethwaite (knee) all had surgery during the off-season and are undergoing rehabilitation, according to the province (BBC Sport).
Ulster's competitive schedule opens at home to Edinburgh in the URC on 25 September. Before that, warm-up fixtures against Edinburgh at Hive Stadium on 4 September and Ospreys at Affidea Stadium on 11 September will give head coach Richie Murphy a chance to assess his options in Henderson's absence (Ulster Rugby).
For Henderson, the broader picture is one of a decorated career caught in a holding pattern. He has 86 Ireland caps, the last earned against New Zealand in November. He is a two-time British and Irish Lions tourist, having travelled with the composite side to New Zealand in 2017 and South Africa in 2021. At his best, he is among the most athletic second rows in European rugby — mobile, physical and adept at the lineout (the restart where the ball is thrown between two lines of players).
Whether this latest setback proves to be a brief interruption or a more significant hurdle will depend on how the hip responds. Henderson has overcome serious injuries before, including thumb surgery that kept him out for 10 weeks in 2018 (BBC Sport). But at 34, the road back is never quite as forgiving.
