Mike Catt has been sidelined for the rest of the season with a shoulder problem.

The Bath and England back, capped 56 times, is to undergo surgery for a torn shoulder tendon in the next couple of weeks.

The 30-year-old is expected to be out of action for both club and country for between four and six months.

Catt, whose Lions tour of Australia last summer was wrecked by a calf injury, lost his England place at the start of this year's Six Nations Championship.

After the operation, Catt faces a lengthy period of rehabilitation, and it could well be late summer before he is able to contemplate a comeback.