MUNSTER captain Paul O'Connell has been ruled out of Sunday's Heineken Cup semi-final against Biarritz with a groin injury.

O'Connell has not played since the final match of Ireland's Six Nations campaign against Scotland in March.

The 30-year-old second row saw a specialist in Liverpool but has still been forced to concede defeat in his race to be fit for the trip to San Sebastian.

"Paul hasn't played for us since January so it's a fair block of time since he's trained with us or been anywhere near the training pitch,’’ said Munster coach Tony McGahan.

"It's been a long saga since the Six Nations. We tried a number of remedies and recommendations but at this stage he was too far gone.

"For this particular week he's just not ready. To be out for that length of time he needs to have trained and next week's game is on a Sunday so that means he won't train again until next Wednesday.’’ Keith Earls has recovered from his groin problem while Doug Howlett, Ian Dowling and Nick Williams have also been passed fit.