Changes to
City v Country

Penrith winger Luke Rooney has been called into the NSW City rugby league team to play NSW Country on Friday night after Eric Grothe was ruled out.

Grothe's Parramatta club advised the City selectors he would not be fit to play the match in Dubbo. City also had concerns on the other wing with Bulldogs goalkicking ace Hazem El Masri in serious doubt and sent away from today's team medicals for scans on an injured hamstring.

Cronulla's David Simmons is on standby for El Masri. Earlier Newcastle backrower Clint Newton was sent for scans on a possible fractured eye socket that could rule him out of the Country team. Newton, named on Country's interchange bench, was injured in yesterday's 32-30 NRL win over Brisbane in Newcastle.

X-rays last night cleared him of any major structural damage around the eye but Country's medical officials wanted the injury further assessed before clearing him to play. The rest of the Country team was given the all-clear, with Penrith hooker Luke Priddis overcoming the corked thigh he suffered in Saturday night's loss to North Queensland.