IRELAND have been dealt a major blow after Erin King was ruled out of the remainder of the Six Nations. And to add insult to injury, the 21-year-old will also miss the Rugby World Cup in August and September. The Blessington-native suffered a knee injury during Scott Bemand's side's defeat to England at Virgin Media Park last weekend. King had surgery on Thursday but, as a result of the injury, she will miss both of Ireland's remaining Championship games against Wales and Scotland. And she will also be unavailable for the Rugby World Cup, at which the Girls in Green will face New Zealand, Japan, and Spain. King lamented: "I’m heartbroken to have suffered a serious knee injury that means I will miss the rest of the Six Nations along with the Rugby World Cup. “It feels very unfair right now but I’ve had the best few months with this team, and I can’t wait to support in every way I can from the sidelines. “It will be a long road ahead, but with the support I have from family, friends, and team-mates around me, I will learn to accept that everything happens for a reason, and if I stick to the process and rehab programme set out by the medical team, I’ll be back better.” King has been a breakout star for Ireland in the past year. She was part of the 7s side that played at the Olympics in Paris last summer. And she made her mark in 15s rugby by coming off the bench and scoring two tries in a historic victory over New Zealand last September. Her remarkable rise was recognised last November when she was named the World Rugby Women’s 15s Breakthrough Player of the Year. King will be a massive miss for both the rest of the Six Nations and the World Cup in England. Ireland qualified for the tournament by finishing third at the Six Nations last year. And star Aoife Wafer believes they are capable of making a huge dent at the competition. The Wexford native said: “This group has the capability to do something really special. The World Cup can be a very tough challenge in terms of, if you’re offbeat, that’s you gone. “We’ve reached the World Cup semis before and we plan on going further than that.” But Wafer’s immediate focus is on cementing third place in the Six Nations, with trips to Wales and Scotland to come. Ireland lost to France in the opening round — despite Wafer touching down twice — and beat Italy 54-12 last time out. Wafer added: “We want to close that gap on France and England. “We showed against Italy that when we’re on it, we’re really on it. It just shows that when we’re the best of us, we can compete. “When it comes to a World Cup, hopefully we can beat them.”