Play was held up for 10 minutes while medics attended to Stcherbina

Dragons centre Marc Stcherbina has had a successful neck operation after being rushed to hospital in the 26-7 Heineken Cup defeat in Toulouse.

Stcherbina was stretchered off after the 49th-minute incident where he was involved in a tackle.

The 32-year-old Australian will not travel back to the UK for a few days.

"Marc has had an operation to stabilise his neck following damage to a disc and a crack in a bone," said Dragons chief executive Gethin Jenkins.

"The operation has gone well and he has movement in his arms and legs.

"He will now undergo further tests before a decision will be taken on when he will be retuned home to Wales.

"Our main priority is his long-term wellbeing and we are grateful to the hospital staff, along with those at the Toulouse club, for their professionalism and support.

"Marc is in good spirits and we hope to have him back in Wales as soon as possible."

The Dragons were trailing 7-0 at the time of the incident and there was a 10-minute break in play while medics attended to Stcherbina.

Dragons coach Paul Turner said: "It was obviously pretty concerning at the time.

"He's not a guy that goes down pretty cheaply... and our thoughts are with him."

The Sydney-bred player joined the Dragons from Welsh rivals Cardiff Blues in the summer after stints with the Waratahs, Biarritz and Northampton.

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