Rugby | No new caps or Halfpenny in Wales tour squad to New Zealand

Leaving out Leigh Halfpenny was the hardest decision, Wales coach Warren Gatland said yesterday in naming his squad for the rugby tour of New Zealand next month.
It was easier not to pick any new caps.
“It’s not the place to blood youngsters,” Gatland said. “You want to go there with as much experience as you need.”
There’s experience in spades, with the 35 players averaging more than 30 caps each. They have three shots at becoming the first Wales side to beat the All Blacks in New Zealand.
They also have a pre-tour match against England at Twickenham on May 29 so they don’t go on tour under-cooked. Wales, second to England in the Six Nations, leaves for New Zealand the next day.
Halfpenny has not played since September, when the star fullback ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in the last warmup for the Rugby World Cup. He had more surgery on the knee last month, setting back his recovery at his Toulon club.
This week, Toulon owner Mourad Boudjellal suggested Halfpenny might be fit for the French Top 14 playoffs, which don’t finish until June 24, the day before Wales’ third and last test against the All Blacks. Boudjellal reportedly said if Halfpenny was picked by Wales and missed the playoffs, then he wouldn’t pay him.
Gatland said Halfpenny was on their standby list but wouldn’t be considered for a callup without matches under his belt. He was running, added Gatland, who was conscious of not putting Halfpenny in the middle of a dispute between club and country. Wales was keen to keep its relationship with clubs “as positive as possible.”
In that regard, he expected the other two France-based players, lock Luke Charteris and midfielder Jonathan Davies, to join the squad after the England game.
Others were picked carrying injuries, including captain Sam Warburton, lock Alun Wyn Jones, and prop Samson Lee. AP