The Welsh Rugby Union have confirmed that Leicester Tigers back Sam Costelow has undergone surgery for a fractured jaw and will miss his country’s fifth-place play-off final at the World Under-20 Championship this weekend.

The 18-year-old has featured in three of the four games so far at this year’s tournament, including a start at inside centre against Fiji, but will miss the final tie after picking up the injury against New Zealand on Monday.

The WRU have confirmed that Costelow has returned to the team hotel in Rosario after undergoing surgery on Tuesday evening.

Although he is unable to play any further part in the Championship, he will remain with the team until the conclusion of the tournament.

His full recovery will be monitored by the usual WRU medical protocols on his return home, before linking up with his Tigers colleagues next month.

Costelow, who played a key part in the Tigers Academy’s back-to-back Under-18 league titles over the past two seasons, stepped up from school-age international rugby to feature in Wales’ U20 Six Nations challenge alongside club colleague Tommy Reffell earlier this year before being selected for the World Championships.