Jamie Peacock will lead Great Britain in the three-match Gillette Fusion Test series against New Zealand.
Leeds forward retains armband
Jamie Peacock will lead Great Britain in the three-match Gillette Fusion Test series against New Zealand.
The Leeds forward - who skippered the Lions during the Tri-Nations Series in both 2005 and 2006 - retained the armband ahead of Warrington prop Adrian Morley.
Morley was captain in Peacock's absence during the mid-season Test against France and also led the Northern Union in last Saturday's centenary international against the All Golds.
"Jamie has done a terrific job in the absence of Paul Sculthorpe and, once we came through fit from the Grand Final series, he was a fairly obvious choice," coach Tony Smith told a news conference at Headingley on Monday.
Morley cleared, McGuire out
Morley has been cleared to play in Saturday's series opener at the Galpharm Stadium after a video review panel ruled he had no case to answer for an alleged high tackle during the All Golds match.
But Peacock's Leeds team-mate Danny McGuire misses out after x-rays revealed he sustained a fractured hand in the same match.
The absence of the stand-off means Leon Pryce looks certain to form a half-back partnership with Rob Burrow.
"He (McGuire) won't be able to play this weekend but there is no displacement and we think he he will be available for the last two games," said Smith.
On Pryce's position, he added: "He's a fairly obvious candidate for that position and, with Danny being injured, it reduces the options."
Hull centre Kirk Yeaman was able to train on Monday despite aggravating an ankle strain against the All Golds and Wigan loose forward Sean O'Loughlin has fully recovered from a hand injury.
Controversy
Another player available is Samoa-born forward Maurie Fa'asavalu, who has pledged his allegiance to Great Britain after qualifying through residency.
The St Helens star was selected in the squad ahead of Andy Coley, Nick Fozzard and Andy Lynch, with Smith admitting it was a tough choice.
"It was a big call and something I've thought long and hard about," he said.
"He is a bit of a special case. For him only ever having played his rugby league in this country is quite a unique situation. I went through the right channels and spoke to various people.
"But, once I weighed everything up, I thought the pros outweighed the cons so I've gone with Maurie and he's delighted. He's very passionate about it and wants to do it for all the right reasons."
