Wallabies fly half Quade Cooper has been ruled out of rugby for at least six months after it was confirmed he needed a knee reconstruction.Cooper's Rugby World Cup campaign ended in disaster when he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in the 22nd minute of Australia's 21-18 victory over Wales in Friday's third-place playoff.

The Wallabies and Reds fly half visited his surgeon in Brisbane on Sunday.

As a result of the consultation, the 23-year-old will undergo an MRI scan in the coming days before having surgery to reconstruct the ACL, while also repairing his lateral ligament.

The best-case scenario of six months would see the mercurial playmaker return in early May, meaning he will miss at least the first 10 rounds of the Reds' Super Rugby title defence.

He will also miss the Wallabies' next two fixtures, against the Barbarians at Twickenham on November 26 and Wales at Millennium Stadium on December 3.

The injury comes as the final insult to a tumultuous World Cup campaign for Cooper, which saw New Zealand-born player targeted by the New Zealand media and general public throughout the tournament.