England take axe to World Cup squad

England rugby league coach Tony Smith has axed more than half the players who went to last year's World Cup from the squad that will compete in the inaugural Four Nations series later this year.

The 24-man squad includes only 11 survivors from a campaign which ended with a semi-final defeat by New Zealand.

St Helens trio Leon Pryce, Ade Gardner and Paul Wellens all miss out, as do Rob Burrow, Jamie Jones-Buchanan and Keith Senior, key members of the Leeds squad which won a third straight Super League title at the weekend.

Smith has included two 20-year-olds - St Helens' utility back Kyle Eastmond and Wigan's Super League young player of the year Sam Tomkins - as well as Salford's teenage scrum-half Richie Myler and admitted he had half an eye on the next World Cup in 2013.

"I think it's time to put some fresh faces in," Smith said. "We've got some young people coming through and they deserve a chance. There is only one way to gain experience and that's by picking them. They have had tremendous years and deserve to be there.

"This series is about now but it's also about the future and we want to build for the future. We feel that they're ready now."

Leeds skipper Kevin Sinfield is recalled following his man-of-the-match display in Saturday's Grand Final at Old Trafford, in which Eastmond enhanced his reputation with a superb performance in defeat for St Helens.

Smith expects Eastmond to be a regular for England for years to come.

"He is able to cover numerous positions and make a fist of each of them. He's a tremendous young player and a very exciting player who will add a lot of depth to our squad. He has had a big impact on Saints this year and I'm sure he'll have a big impact for England in this tournament as well."

The loss of Wakefield centre Ryan Atkins paved the way for the recall of Leeds threequarter Lee Smith, who is switching codes with Wasps at the end of the Four Nations.

England will warm up for the Four Nations with a friendly against Wales in Bridgend on Saturday. The tournament, which also involves Australia and New Zealand, starts with England's clash with France on October 23 and finishes with the final on November 14.

England Four Nations squad: Chris Bridge (Warrington), Shaun Briscoe (Hull KR), Sam Burgess (Bradford), Garreth Carvell (Warrington), Eorl Crabtree (Huddersfield), Kyle Eastmond (St Helens), Gareth Ellis (Wests Tigers), Peter Fox (Hull KR), James Graham (St Helens), Ryan Hall (Leeds), Danny McGuire (Leeds), Scott Moore (Huddersfield), Adrian Morley (Warrington), Richard Myler (Salford), Sean O'Loughlin (Wigan), Jamie Peacock (Leeds, capt), James Roby (St Helens), Michael Shenton (Castleford), Kevin Sinfield (Leeds), Lee Smith (Leeds), Paul Sykes (Bradford), Sam Tomkins (Wigan), Ben Westwood (Warrington), Jon Wilkin (St Helens)