Great Britain coach David Waite has picked 12 players who took part in the 64-10 thrashing by Australia in July for the forthcoming Test matches against New Zealand.

Injuries meant eight players were not available, with Kris Radlinski, Paul Wellens, Terry Newton and Paul Johnson all missing out after being part of the side hammered by Australia.

Of the others who miss out the absence of St Helens scrum-half Sean Long is a particular blow.

Long has a fractured cheekbone and the extent of his injury only became clear after Saints' match against the Kiwis on Friday night.

Physically demanding

"That came out of the blue, but the rest I was aware of," Waite said. "It's the game we play. They're not at full strength either.

"If you play Test football at the end of the season, you are never going to get your top 17 players, but we're confident in the quality of player available.

"The loss of Sean opens it up for someone like Danny Orr and Paul Deacon to seize the moment."

Deacon, man-of-the-match in last Saturday's Super League Grand Final, looks certain to take over at scrum-half from Ryan Sheridan, who has fallen out of favour since the Sydney Test.

Wing gambles

The absence of a recognised full-back looks set to pave the way for veteran Gary Connolly to make a swansong in rugby league before he plays out his career in rugby union with Orrell.

Leon Pryce, one of seven Bradford players in the 21-man squad, and Karl Pratt look likely to occupy the wing spots despite indifferent seasons with their clubs.

Wigan's Andy Farrell, meanwhile, has been confirmed as captain for the series.

One more player will be added to the squad from the England A team following their match against New Zealand at Brentford on Wednesday.

Wigan utility player Sean O'Loughlin will captain the England A team against the Kiwis, and on their tour to Fiji and Tonga in November.

---

Great Britain squad: P Anderson (Bradford), G Connolly (Wigan), K Cunningham (St Helens), P Deacon (Bradford), A Farrell (Wigan, capt), S Fielden (Bradford), M Forshaw (Bradford), L Gilmour (Bradford), M Gleeson (St Helens), R Horne (Hull), C Joynt (St Helens), B McDermott (Leeds), A Morley (Sydney Roosters), T O'Connor (Wigan), D Orr (Castleford), J Peacock (Bradford), K Pratt (Leeds), L Pryce (Bradford), P Sculthorpe (St Helens), K Senior (Leeds), K Sinfield (Leeds).

---

A squad: M Aspinwall (Wigan), M Bennett (St Helens), R Bibey (Wigan), S Briscoe (Wigan), R Burrow (Leeds), M Calderwood (Leeds), P Cooke (Hull), M Diskin (Leeds), G Ellis (Wakefield), A Gardner (St Helens), M Higham (St Helens), R Hudson (Castleford), A Lynch (Castleford), D McGuire (Leeds), R Moore (Bradford), S O'Loughlin (Wigan, capt), W Pryce (Castleford), J Stankevitch (St Helens), P Sykes (London), D Tickle (Wigan), D Ward (Leeds), C Walker (Leeds).