Care’s despair at England axe for drink-drive arrest
ENGLAND and Harlequins scrum-half Danny Care admits he is “devastated” after being excluded from the Six Nations squad for being arrested on suspicion of drink-driving.
The New Year’s Day incident came just three weeks after the 25-year-old, who was tipped to start the tournament as first-choice, had been arrested for being drunk and disorderly.
Interim England head coach Stuart Lancaster called Care’s off-field behaviour “completely unacceptable”, while Quins boss Conor O’Shea labelled his actions “inexcusable”.
Care has been told he will be frozen out for at least the Six Nations, as well as being fined £10,000 by the Premiership leaders and ordered to undertake a lengthy stint of work in the community.
“I do accept that I made a very bad decision on the evening in question and need to take the punishment that the courts hand out,” said Care, who is due in court on 16 January.
“I am devastated not to be selected for the Elite Player Squad for the Six Nations as I felt I had been playing near the top of my game with Quins. It’s now up to me to get my head down, keep playing well and learn from my actions.”