Wayne Bennett has made three changes to the Great Britain side for Saturday’s rugby league Test against New Zealand, with Jake Connor earning a recall.

Joe Philbin and Daryl Clark have also been named, with Lachlan Coote dropped and Oliver Gildart (shoulder) and Luke Thompson (rib) injured.

Johnny Lomax has been promoted from the bench to replace Coote at fullback.

Jack Hughes, George Williams, Jake Trueman and Blake Austin were included in an expanded 21-man squad that will be whittled down to 19 on Friday.

It will be the second chance in a row for the reborn Hastings, who has impressed following an outstanding maiden season in the Super League with Salford.

The former Sydney Roosters and Manly playmaker is the reigning Man of Steel, the competition’s player of the season.

Lions assistant coach Danny Ward admitted that while winning remains the priority, they were also keeping an eye on building towards the World Cup.

“Yeah, we’re here to win games. Yes we want to perform. (But) there’s a plan moving forward,” Ward told reporters on Tuesday.

“It’s not just about this year, it’s about next year in the World Cup, and you’ve got to look a little bit like that when you bring in players into these squads.

“A lot of new players in this squad. You look at people like Jackson Hastings and Trueman and people like that, you’re looking for the future as well.

“You’ll gauge a little bit on the performances of those new guys and how they fit into this environment. But at the end of the day, yeah it’s about results as well.

GREAT BRITAIN SIDE v NEW ZEALAND

Jonny Lomax, Jermaine McGillvary, Zak Hardaker, Jake Connor, Ryan Hall, Gareth Widdop, Jackson Hastings, Chris Hill, Josh Hodgson, Tom Burgess, John Bateman, Elliott Whitehead, James Graham (c). Res (from): Josh Jones, Joe Philbin, Daryl Clark, Alex Walmsley, Jack Hughes, George Williams, Jake Trueman, Blake Austin.