GETTY Warren Gatland has called Tomas Francis and Gareth Davies up to his British and Irish Lions squad

No8 Ross Moriarty is the latest player to be ruled out of the tour with a nerve problem in his leg with Stuart Hogg already having been sent home and Jonathan Davies, Courtney Lawes, Owen Farrell and Sam Warburton all battling for fitness. Gatland has therefore pulled Kristian Dacey, Cory Hill, Tomas Francis and Gareth Davies from Wales' two-Test tour of Tonga to join the Test match - the quartet have just 58 international caps between them. Allan Dell and Finn Russell will also travel from Scotland's tour of Australia with the Lions coach responding to widespread fan outrage by saying that their being in that part of the world already played a big part in their call-up. "There's a bit of geography," Gatland said.

British & Irish Lions squad for 2017 New Zealand tour Sat, June 17, 2017 Express Sport runs through the confirmed Lions squad for the 2017 tour to New Zealand Play slideshow Getty Images 1 of 48 Express Sport runs through the 37-man Lions squad ahead of the New Zealand tour

"We did the same in 2013 and it was always part of the plan to cover a couple of Test lads. "When you look at the positions we're covering - 1, 2, 3, second row, 9 and 10 - it's really hard in a Test week to back up and double up in those positions. "We would have had players in the Test side having to sit on the bench on Tuesday night and then be preparing for Saturday.

"In 2013, we brought in some players from quite a long way away - Christian Wade was an example - who struggled for the first couple of days. "Those players that are here coming from Wales and Scotland have acclimatised whereas players coming form Argentina they'd have left tomorrow and come in on Monday. "Those time-zones would have been particularly hard on them as individuals. "We already had Cory Hill train with us back in Wales and knows the calls so that should help us in our preparation for next week and we've said all along this is about the Test series."

PA The four new British and Irish Lions are pitchside for today's clash with Maori All Blacks