Great Britain name squad for
Gillette Tri-Nations

Great Britain coach Brian Noble has included five uncapped players in his 24-strong squad for the Gillette Tri-Nations Series.

Hull pair Gareth Raynor and Jamie Thackray, St Helens duo Nick Fozzard and Jon Wilkin and Leeds scrum-half Rob Burrow were the new faces unveiled at a press conference at the team?s Manchester base.

Also included in the squad which flies out to Spain on Tuesday for a four-day warm-weather training camp is Bradford scrum-half Paul Deacon, the only player to force his way in from outside the initial 40-strong squad.

The door opened for Deacon following the withdrawal of Leeds half-back Danny McGuire with a groin injury and lingering doubts over the fitness of St Helens scrum-half Sean Long, who is still recovering from a fractured cheekbone.

?I spoke to Sean and basically he is probably available but the reality is that we need to hit the ground running this year,? said Noble.

?He?s comfortable with what we?ve said. The halves that we?ve picked in the team are probably more up to speed than Sean.

?Paul?s form of the last six weeks has been pretty impressive. He stood up there and played well in big high-pressure games.

?He?s been playing, as the whole team have, with a barrel of a gun facing them for six weeks.

?We need to pick our form players and those who have played in the intense games.?

Deacon, who clinched his place on the back of the Bulls? Super League Grand Final triumph, and Leeds captain Kevin Sinfield have both have earned recalls.

Raynor got the nod ahead of Mark Calderwood, the League?s leading tryscorer this year, and Ade Gardner.

Players will get the chance to press their claims for a vacancy Noble has left open in the squad when England play against France at Headingley on Sunday.

?We?ve got 24 or 25 very exciting players and some people still knocking on the door,? said Noble, who was also denied the services of Paul Sculthorpe, Terry Newton, Kris Radlinski and Paul King through injury.

?We could probably have seven or eight players that aren?t in there for various reasons but we go with what we?ve got and what we?ve got is pretty good.?

The squad includes 12 players involved in last Saturday?s Grand Final between Bradford and Leeds, with League leaders St Helens providing six representatives and Hull three.

Brian Carney and Stephen Wild are the sole representatives from Wigan, which is a far cry from 1992 when the famous club had a record 10 players in Britain?s first Test squad - seven of them in the starting line-up and three on the bench.

?It is unusual,? admitted Noble. ?If you?re picking on form, they didn?t finish in the top six and they have had a lot of injuries. (Gareth) Hock and (Sean) O?Loughlin would have been considered. It may look incredible but I think it?s a compliment to the standard of the competition.?

Set to make his international comeback is St Helens hooker Keiron Cunningham, who has played only one Test in the last three years because of injury.

?It?s a huge boost,? admitted Noble.

?I?m really, really excited about it. We all know he?s a world-class player and we deserve to see him play on the world stage, the best against the best, and I know Keiron is excited about that.?

Britain, who have eight players on standby, including two others from outside the initial 40-strong squad, open their campaign against New Zealand at Loftus Road, London, on Saturday, October 29.

Meanwhile, Huddersfield stand-off Chris Thorman, who was named in the original party, will captain England against France at Headingley on Sunday and against New Zealand at Warrington on November 6.

Great Britain squad for the 2005 Gillette Tri-Nations:

1. Rob Burrow (Leeds Rhinos) 2. Paul Deacon (Bradford Bulls) 3. Brian Carney (Wigan Warriors, vice-captain) 4. Keiron Cunningham (St Helens) 5. Nick Fozzard (St Helens) 6. Gareth Ellis (Leeds Rhinos) 7. Stuart Fielden (Bradford Bulls) 8. Lee Gilmour (St Helens) 9. Martin Gleeson (Warrington Wolves) 10. Iestyn Harris (Bradford Bulls) 11. Richard Horne (Hull FC) 12. Mickey Higham (St Helens) 13. Paul Johnson (Bradford Bulls) 14. Jamie Thackray (Hull FC) 15. Adrian Morley (Sydney Roosters/ Bradford Bulls) 16. Jamie Peacock (Bradford Bulls, captain) 17. Leon Pryce (Bradford Bulls) 18. Gareth Raynor (Hull FC) 19. Keith Senior (Leeds Rhinos) 20. Kevin Sinfield (Leeds Rhinos) 21. Chev Walker (Leeds Rhinos) 22. Paul Wellens (St Helens) 23. Stephen Wild (Wigan Warriors) 24. Jon Wilkin (St Helens)

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Thanks to www.superleague.co.uk for this news.