The absence of Sackey and Hipkiss will be a setback for England

England wing Paul Sackey and centre Dan Hipkiss have been ruled out of the tour of New Zealand because of injuries.

Sackey has a knee injury, while Hipkiss suffered a fractured cheekbone in Leicester's Premiership final defeat against Wasps on Saturday.

The pair will be replaced by Leicester wing Tom Varndell and Wasps centre Dominic Waldouck.

There were also doubts over Charlie Hodgson and Toby Flood but they are fit for the two-Test tour.

The duo suffered facial injuries during England's 17-14 victory over the Barbarians on Sunday.

England play the All Blacks in Auckland on 14 June and in Christchurch seven days later.

Tour manager Rob Andrew said: "On behalf of the squad, I would like to wish Paul and Dan speedy recoveries from their injuries.

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"Both Dominic and Tom are excellent players, and I look forward to working with them over the next three weeks."

Waldouck was Hipkiss' opposite number when Wasps beat Leicester on Saturday and is as one of England's brightest midfield prospects.

But, with Mike Tindall and Mathew Tait in the squad he may find his chances limited.

"Being asked to tour New Zealand is fantastic, and I'm very excited and honoured to have been selected," he said.

"It will be my first senior tour, and to go to New Zealand will be a massive challenge, but it's a great opportunity to gather experience and learn from other players on the tour."

Varndell added: "My thoughts are with Paul.

"It's a great honour to be called up with so many quality English wingers around in the Guinness Premiership.

"My last senior tour was to Australia in 2006, so I'm looking forward to having the opportunity of being part of the England squad again."