Care plan is back in force for Lancaster
DANNY CARE’S sensational form for Harlequins this season has seen him win a threeway tussle for the England scrum-half place in Saturday’s RBS 6 Nations opener against France.
The 27-year- old will reclaim the No 9 shirt when the team is announced by head coach Stuart Lancaster tomorrow, with Lee Dickson of Northampton dropping down to the bench for the match in Paris.
Care’s return to favour comes at the expense of Leicester’s Ben Youngs, who joins Chris Ashton as a high-profile selection casualty at the start of the championship.
Youngs was a mainstay of the national team throughout the majority of the Six Nations last season, with Care restricted to a solitary start in a reshuffled side against Italy. But after being ousted from the firstchoice XV by Dickson during the recent autumn campaign, Youngs has now lost his place in the matchday squad following some off-colour performances for the Tigers.
Care’s career hit a low ebb at the start of Lancaster’s reign two years ago, when he was ejected from the Test squad after being embroiled in two alcohol-related incidents.
Since working hard to force his way back into the England fold, he has had to be patient, limited to just four starts and six replacement appearances, but now he has been backed to bring his trademark blend of pace, daring and dynamism behind the scrum.
After announcing a 26-man party to travel to the French capital tomorrow, Lancaster said: ‘Competition at scrum-half has been particularly tight. Danny Care’s form leading into the Six Nations has been excellent and he merits his inclusion.
‘Ben Youngs misses out this time, but he is a quality player and I am sure he will respond in the same way Danny did at the start of the year.’
Wasps prop Matt Mullan will travel with the squad as front-row cover and Bath backs George Ford and Anthony Watson are also making the trip in a non-playing capacity.
Lancaster and his assistants have taken the unusual step of not selecting a replacement fly-half, on the basis that Billy Twelvetrees or Alex Goode could fill in at No 10 if required.