Halfpenny ruled out of Wales' NZ tour

Flank Warburton has not played since injuring his shoulder playing for Cardiff Blues last month, while fullback Halfpenny has been out since damaging his knee against Italy last September.

The experienced squad will tackle England at Twickenham on May 29 before playing three Tests against world champions New Zealand, as well as a match against local side the Chiefs, in June.

"We have picked a squad that is packed full of experience for what is going to be a challenging, but exciting five-match campaign," said head coach Warren Gatland.

"We will be facing the Six Nations Champions at Twickenham first up and that will be an important start to the tour and will set the tone for the weeks ahead. 

"We will have a bit of time together when we land in New Zealand before the first Test then its into three Test matches against the All Blacks plus a midweek match against the Chiefs.

"It is a great opportunity for us to test ourselves, build on the World Cup and the Six Nations and it's a challenge we are all looking forward to.

"We are in a great position in terms of the experience in the squad especially when you look at the age of most of the players and this is going to be another important summer."

Wales squad: 

Forwards: Rob Evans, Tomas Francis, Paul James, Gethin Jenkins, Rhodri Jones, Samson Lee, Scott Baldwin, Kristian Dacey, Ken Owens, Jake Ball, Luke Charteris, Bradley Davies, Alun Wyn Jones, Taulupe Faletau, James King, Dan Lydiate, Ross Moriarty, Josh Turnbull, Sam Warburton.

Backs: Gareth Davies, Rhys Webb, Lloyd Williams, Gareth Anscombe, Dan Biggar, Rhys Priestland, Jonathan Davies, Tyler Morgan, Jamie Roberts, Scott Williams, Hallam Amos, Matthew Morgan, Tom James, George North, Eli Walker, Liam Williams.

Agence France-Presse