HARLEQUINS are trying to persuade Danny Care to sign a new contract and finish his career at The Stoop, 18 years after he made his debut for the club.
The 37-year old won his 100th England cap during the Six Nations and at the end of the tournament said he would take time to reflect before deciding whether to end his international career.
The scrum-half has been linked with Bayonne, the club Manu Tuilagi is joining along with Northampton’s Alex Moon. If Care moved to France he would not be considered by England but Quins are hoping he will stay.
“This is the time of year when you have a lot of conversations with players,” said Billy Millard, Quins director of rugby. “Danny is one of them. He is a massive part of this club and we want to keep him.
“We did not want to take his focus away when he was with England. Our head of recruitment (Ed Stokes) has known Danny for 20 years. This has all been planned and Danny is awesome to deal with.”
One player who is leaving is centre Andre Esterhuizen, right, who is returning to South Africa after four years in London for family reasons. The hard-carrying midfielder, who had another year on his contract, quickly became a fan favourite and forced his way into the Springboks’ squad on the strength of his performances in the Premiership.
“Andre has an amazing relationship with the players, staff and supporters,” said Millard. “He handled himself really well in the discussions with us. He is such a big part of our club but we wanted to support him.
“He still has a massive part to play for us this season and going forward because of how he has helped the y
