Yorkshire and England all-rounder Craig White yesterday had an operation to remove two inches of bone from his lower rib and it could be up to three months before he is fit to bowl again.

The operation followed a scan which White had last week on the side injury he suffered on the Ashes tour of Australia.

He was unable to play in some of the one-day games in the latter part of the tour and the problem still bothered him during the World Cup in South Africa.

Yorkshire's director of cricket Geoff Cope now plans to hold urgent talks with new captain Anthony McGrath and coach Kevin Sharp when the pair return from Yorkshire's friendly encounter with Durham at Riverside later today.

And if it is agreed that Yorkshire now require a second overseas player to support Australian left-hander Matthew Elliott, they will sign one as soon as possible.

Yorkshire originally thought they had a strong enough squad not to need replacing the unavailable Darren Lehmann but now they are having to think again.

"We need to assess our strengths and weaknesses before making a final decision and it is important I seek the views of McGrath and Sharp first," said Cope.

The absence of White leaves Yorkshire with a gaping hole to fill with the start of the season only eight days away.

While awaiting the results of the scan last week, White said: "I badly wanted to play in the World Cup, but I am now probably paying the price for doing so."

White has been advised he needs six weeks complete rest and it is expected to be twice that time before he can bowl again, which puts him out of England contention until well into the summer.

* England Under 19s fast bowler Tim Bresnan led the way as Yorkshire batted all day on the second day of their match with Bradford-Leeds Universities' Centre of Excellence.

Bresnan hit 102 off 79 balls with five sixes and 13 fours before retiring while Gough (79 from 80 balls with three sixes and nine fours) and Michael Lumb (72 from 74 balls with one six, one five and 13 fours) also enjoyed themselves.

Skipper Gough declared the innings on 437 for nine and Yorkshire then went in again and were 70 for three at the close.