A capped England international could be in line for an Ireland call-up after Garry Ringrose was ruled unlikely to feature in the upcoming Nations Championship fixtures.

The Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) has confirmed that the Leinster centre is "unlikely" to play in Ireland's home matches against Argentina, Fiji and South Africa.

The 31-year-old has remained with Leinster to continue his rehabilitation, leaving Ireland with a potential vacancy in midfield.

No replacement has been confirmed, but former England international Dan Kelly could come into contention.

Born in Manchester in 2001, Kelly joined Munster in 2025 after spending five years with Leicester Tigers.

He started his rugby journey at Rochdale RUFC before joining the Sale Sharks academy and later attending Loughborough University.

Kelly made his Leicester debut in 2020 and went on to make 98 appearances for the club. He became a regular starter and an important figure in their defence, helping the Tigers win the Premiership title in the 2021/22 season.

The centre also earned his first and only England cap against Canada in July 2021.

However, Kelly had previously represented Ireland at Under-20 level before committing his international future to Ireland after featuring for Ireland A in 2025.

He has made two appearances for Ireland A against Spain and England A, putting himself on Andy Farrell's radar as he looks to progress through the international pathway.

A place in the senior squad for the Nations Championship could give Kelly the opportunity to earn his first Ireland Test cap.

Kelly's younger brother, Seb, remains part of the England set-up and represented the country at this year's World Rugby U20 Championship while at Sale Sharks.

However, his tournament ended in controversy when he was sent off for a headbutt during England's semi-final defeat to South Africa.

The brothers now represent different international pathways, something Seb discussed with RUCK after England U20s' Six Nations defeat to Ireland earlier this year.

He revealed that his older brother had been quick to give him some banter after he spoke to several Munster academy players.

“There's a few academy boys that are at Munster, where he is now, and I got chatting to a couple of them after and was having a laugh with them and got the phone call later on from my brother,” Kelly said.

“It was a good laugh over the phone, he was taking the mick out of me, it was funny.”