Wallabies fly half Quade Cooper has been booked in for a knee reconstruction and is facing at least six months out of rugby.

Cooper's right knee gave way during the first half of Australia's 21-18 win over Wales in the bronze medal play-off of the Rugby World Cup.

He saw a surgeon in Brisbane today and has been scheduled to have an MRI scan before having surgery to reconstruct the anterior cruciate ligament, as well as repair the lateral ligament.

An Australian Rugby Union statement said Cooper's recovery time is expected to be at least six months.

The news comes come as a blow to both the Wallabies and Queensland Reds, ruling the mercurial playmaker out of an upcoming northern hemisphere tour and the start of the Super Rugby season.

Cooper was instrumental in the Reds' 18-13 title win over the Crusaders in July and Wallabies coach Robbie Deans put a lot of faith in his abilities, despite a sometimes inconsistent performance at the World Cup.

He came under intense scrutiny and was regularly booed while playing in his native New Zealand, where he was cast as a villain for coming to blows with beloved All Blacks captain Richie McCaw ahead of the World Cup.

All Blacks coach Graham Henry blamed Cooper for his own unpopularity, saying: "Quade has brought a wee bit of that on himself.

"You've got to earn some respect and he lost some respect from previous actions."