Six Nations: England hail 'class-act' Danny Care as century looms against Ireland

Richard Wigglesworth has hailed Danny Care’s infectious mix of grit and enthusiasm with the evergreen Harlequins scrum-half on the verge of 100 England caps.

Attack coach Wigglesworth used to do battle with Care for the Red Rose No9 shirt, but now leans on the 37-year-old as a crucial barometer of the mood in Steve Borthwick’s Test ranks.

Care thought his England career was done and dusted as many as four times previously, but some 16 years after his international debut he now stands on the cusp of a huge landmark.

Half-backs Alex Mitchell and Marcus Smith must prove their fitness in England training on Monday and Tuesday to contest selection for Saturday’s Six Nations clash with Ireland at Twickenham.

Care remains in line to make the match squad, even if Northampton star Mitchell forces his way straight back into the starting lineup after knee trouble.

Former Sale and Saracens scrum-half Wigglesworth paid tribute to Care’s enduring international class, against so many and varied odds across an equally high number of years.

“The perseverance and class Danny has shown to put himself in the position to win 100 caps is brilliant,” said Wigglesworth.

“You tend to remember the tough times and Danny has definitely had some of those, and still got to this point.

“He’s shown enough week-in, week-out that he can still play Test rugby. That takes enthusiasm, love for the game and sheer determination to decide you haven’t had enough.

“A lot of players decide they have had enough, but he has never done that.”

Care exorcised some World Cup demons by making a first genuine dent in a global tournament as England finished third in France in the autumn.

His sole World Cup appearance before that had proved the dead-rubber win over Uruguay in 2015, where England were knocked out in the pool stages as humbled hosts.

Borthwick refused to allow that to be Care’s swan song, calling him back in for Six Nations duty, with Wigglesworth delighted to have his old sparring partner around.

“He's great to coach; you get a good sounding board off him with where the group is, how they're feeling and what we might need,” said Wigglesworth.

“The thing about Danny is he's been just as incredibly popular as a 37-year-old as a 21-year-old.

“Across all these eras, he's still a stable guy the lads will go to in order to smile and feel good.

“It's testament to his character as to how he's done that throughout all the stages of his career.”