Rugby:Brian O'Driscoll will almost certainly miss the rest of the season after a decision was made to have an operation on the troublesome neck/shoulder injury that he has been carrying for almost a year.

Speaking to reporters this afternoon, O’Driscoll said he will have surgery next week and will not play again until at least the start of May. That rules him out of all of Leinster’s Heineken Cup pool games – O’Driscoll hasn’t played a single minute for the province this season – as well as Ireland’s Six Nations programme.

Should Leinster still be involved in the Heineken Cup at that stage, there is a slim possibility the Ireland captain could be involved but the summer tour to the southern hemisphere is a more realistic target.

Explaining how the injury has affected him not just on the pitch, but in his daily life, O’Driscoll also pointed out that he sees a future in the game after recovering from the surgery.

“It’s a trapped nerve starting from my neck and running down into my arm. I need the operation for general life, not just from a rugby point of view,” said the 32-year-old.

“It had become too uncomfortable over the past eight or so months and has grown progressively worse since the World Cup. I just couldn’t go through another full season like this.

“The time came to get some opinions on it and all the surgeons I saw were singing from the same hymn sheet. That gave me confidence that it did need doing. I’ve felt it during collisions, whether I’ve been in control of them or not.

“It hasn’t been dangerous, but you go down because your arm doesn’t work which means you’re not much good to your team.”

After managing the injury since the Six Nations, O’Driscoll is now looking forward to getting the procedure done.

“I haven’t really allowed myself to think about what to discount and what not,” he added. “I’m kind of just keen to get it done, I would have got it done this week but the surgeon in question is away, so that’s why I’ll get it done next week. When I rehab and get into the process of that I’ll know a little bit more.

“I’m sure he’ll (the surgeon) be able to, after a couple of months, give me more of a timeline around how the rehab is going and how things have settled. The latter stages of the Heineken Cup is something to target.

“I’ll know more about how I’m feeling and if I’m getting stronger in the weeks after the operation.

“I’ll be able to set those targets better as time passes. I’ve been out for six months before and know how to cope with these things.

“I see myself coming back from this and playing for certainly another season. Who knows after that, let’s see how the body feels.

“In a strange way a little break like this can give you the incentive to go on and play for a longer time than you anticipated. I certainly feel like I have plenty more to offer.”

Leinster coach Joe Schmidt has not discounted O’Driscoll playing some part at the end of the season and is hoping his star centre will now be able to concentrate on getting back to 100 per cent.

“It has been pending for a while but we have pursued the best advice . . . what is going to be done is the best and most beneficial course of action,” said the New Zealander. “Brian is going to have some surgery and in the meantime we’ll try and keep ticking over and hopefully he’ll have something to come back to in the end.”

O’Driscoll’s absence means Leinster kick off the defence of their Heineken Cup title in Montpellier on Saturday without their talisman. Schmidt’s side, who have won two of the last three finals, will also be without Shane Horgan as he recovers from a knee operation that will keep him sidelined until after Christmas.

Without two of their most senior players against the Top 14 finalists, captain Leo Cullen is fully aware of how tough an assignment it will be.

“It will be a really tough opener in Montpellier,” said Cullen today. “They had an unbelievable home record in the Top 14 last year and they were within 10-15 minutes of beating Toulouse in the French final last season and then only lost by less than a score.

“They are going to be a very tough proposition and everyone in our Pool has strong home records.

“It is almost a given that in the Heineken Cup you have to win your home games so you ask yourself where you are going to pick up an away win. It is tough to see where that can come from though we will have an opportunity straight away against Montpellier.

“The key, once again, will be to keep your destiny in your own hands and after playing at some fantastic venues last season – the Aviva and Millennium Stadium – Twickenham is another amazing venue and it would be great to make it that far.”

Meanwhile, Munster’s Keith Earls, who many believe will be the long-term replacement for O’Driscoll in the number 13 shirt, has been ruled out for between four to six weeks after sustaining medial ligament damage in the Pro12 clash against Leinster at the Aviva stadium last Friday.