Harlequins and England scrum half Danny Care has been banned from driving for 16 months and fined £3,000 following his conviction for drink-driving. He was stopped by police on New Year’s Day and tested over the legal limit and went on to plead guilty to drink driving.
Care has already been dropped from England for the Six Nations campaign and has now also faced the legal ramifications for his actions. Care now has the chance to focus on rebuilding his reputation and regaining his place in the England squad.
Care has said he “accepts that I made a very bad decision on the evening in question” but does emphasise “that at no time did I think I had drunk enough to be over the legal limit.” Care’s decision to not contest the charge shows his acceptance that he was in the wrong and he is eager to move on with the situation.
His dropping from the England squad comes as a result not only of this charge but also of the charge of drunk and disorderly that Care received last autumn. He has a past with Stuart Lancaster, and would have been in with a good chance of starting for England in the Six Nations had it not been for these charges. If as is believed to be a possibility, Lancaster is given the job on a full time basis, Care will be in with a chance of playing a major role in English Rugby’s future.
For now though his aims must be to continue to impress with Quins and force his way back into England consideration. This is the case whether Lancaster remains or if someone such as Mallett takes the role. He clearly has the ability to be England’s 9, but must prove he has the correct attitude. In the light of England’s problems at the World Cup alcohol related issues look to be being taken very seriously and Care must now put the focus back on his on-field ability.