Care back in fold after peace talks
Quins scrum-half recalled by Jones following coffee chat Freeman and Walker handed starts against the Barbarians
Eddie Jones made his peace with Danny Care over a coffee two months ago, it has emerged, with the 35-year-old Harlequins scrumhalf set to make his first appearance for England in four years.
Care was an ever-present fixture within match-day squads during the first three years of Jones’s tenure as England head coach. However he was unceremoniously axed following an alleged confrontation at halftime of England’s 35-15 victory against Japan in November 2018.
At nearly 32, it seemed as if Care’s international career, in which he has won 84 caps, had come to an end as he was overlooked for a succession of scrum-halves playing deputy to Ben Youngs. However, this season Jones acknowledged his blistering form for Harlequins, which has led to a nomination for Premiership player of the season, with a text message. That in turn led to a clear-theair meeting where Care impressed upon Jones his desperation to force his way back into the fold.
“I’ve always liked Danny as a player,” Jones said. “He played a lot of Tests early from 2016 to 2018. He’s got the ability to jump on a break and make sure the attack keeps going forward, which given the speed of the ball in today’s game is invaluable. And he’s a good character.
“We keep an eye on all players. After a game recently I texted him to say ‘well played’, as I thought he played really well. He came back and said he’d love to catch up. We had a coffee and was very adamant on how keen he was to play for England. Then you get a bit more interested. He’s been fantastic, really rejuvenated, spring in his step, sparkle in his eye. A little bit wiser than he was here, so it’s really positive.
“The ruck speed suits him. The speed of the ball now allows him to play his natural game whereas when the ruck ball was slower you have to artificially create attacking situations. He is brilliant at the natural attacking situations.”
Jones would not confirm whether Care’s selection was related to the availability of Leicester scrum-half Youngs, whose sister-in-law Tiffany recently died. “I can’t discuss Ben Youngs,” Jones said. “He is in a final. Once he finishes the final, we will discuss his situation with him.”
Jones will also sound out Harlequins prop Joe Marler about his availability, having not been included in the squad for tomorrow’s uncapped fixture against the Barbarians. Only two uncapped players, Northampton full-back
‘Danny has been fantastic, really rejuvenated, spring in his step, sparkle in his eye and a little bit wiser’
Tommy Freeman and Harlequins hooker Jack Walker, start, with Jones resisting the temptation to fast-track too many youngsters for what he is emphasising is a “England XV game”.
However, Jones has stressed that this is the last opportunity for players to earn their places in the squad for the tour of Australia which he will announce on Monday morning.
“Last-minute impressions are always important,” Jones said. “We always talk about the tea-bag theory. You get your tea bag out of the packet and you never really know how good it is until you put the hot water into it. And on Sunday some of these young guys are going to be in hot water, so we’ll see how good the tea is.”
Jonny May and Joe Cokanasiga start on the wing after long periods of absence, while lock Jonny Hill makes only his second appearance since November after recovering from a foot injury.
Tom Curry captains the team from blindside flanker, with halfbacks Harry Randall and Marcus Smith leading the back line. Courtney Lawes, who captained England during the Six Nations, is on the bench.
“We are experimenting in the game,” Jones said. We are looking at players who are capable of playing
Test rugby and we are looking at doing a couple of different things tactically to see where we can take it to see if it suits the strengths of the players.”
London Irish flier Henry Arundell misses out with a “minor muscle strain” but has not been ruled out of the three Test series against Australia. “He’s got a long career ahead
of him but we don’t need to rush him,” Jones said. “He needs to prepare well and wasn’t able to finish his preparations this week. He will be in the future.”