MARK Bennett, the Glasgow Warriors centre, faces a race against time to be fit for the start of the RBS Six Nations Championship. The 22-year-old will miss Glasgow’s Champions Cup game against Northampton tomorrow as well as the match against Racing 92 at Rugby Park next week, and will consult a specialist on Monday about the shoulder injury sustained in the defeat by Racing against Paris seven days ago.

Gregor Townsend, the Warriors coach, remains hopeful that Bennett will make a return in time to figure in the opening rounds of the Six Nations, which begins for Scotland with a match at home to England on 6 February. “Mark had a number of injuries after the weekend,” Townsend said. “The shoulder obviously was the worst one.

“It didn’t look good at the beginning of the week, but it’s looking better now, so he’s got an appointment on Monday with the consultant that he had a shoulder operation [with] before. We’re crossing everything that he doesn’t need an operation, but we’ll find out after Monday.

“Yeah,” the coach continued when asked if he hoped Bennett would be all right for international duty. “And talking long term whether he needs an operation or not, so let’s hope - because he’s improving and he’s getting more movement - that he’ll get the all-clear next week.”

Meanwhile, Damien Hoyland has become the latest player to sign a new contract with Edinburgh. The winger, also 22, has agreed a two-year extension and is now under contract until May 2018.