England and Harlequins' Danny Care free of strife, enjoying life and ready for Six Nations campaign Everything that has gone on in the last year has made me grow up pretty quickly. Like I say, I couldn't be happier at the moment. I am enjoying playing more of a senior role at the club, taking charge a bit more. At 26 I am one of the old boys around the club at the moment, which is quite scary with the 18 year-olds running around. I am obviously so grateful to Conor O'Shea [director of rugby] and all the players and staff around Quins. While Harlequins punished Care for his misdemeanours - he was fined £10,000 and ordered to work on the club's inner-city coaching programme for his drink-driving offence on Jan 1 - the club also put their collective arm around him. That included support and education around alcohol awareness, and offering him a new three-year extension to his contract last May. He has since been handed a senior role in the club's "strategy group." "I said at the time although it was difficult, we knew what was going on and we knew he would come out of it a better person and a better player and that's what he has become," said O'Shea. I think everyone can see the benefit of that, not just for Harlequins but for England and the game in general. We knew where he was, we knew we had let him down as much as he had let us down because we didn't stop the challenges and problems he was going through at the time. But we recognised it enough that when we put the structures around him, he knows where to draw the line. It is hard to believe he is only 26. The world is his oyster. While Care pays tribute to the role of his parents and brother and sister in helping him navigate the tough times, it is clear O'Shea's influence has also been key. "Conor is like a second dad to me and second dad to a lot of the boys," Care said. He is always there if you want to chat to him about anything. I have some great friends here as well, Jordan [Turner-Hall], Ugo [Monye] and the boys. I think it shows a lot about the club that we stick together through thick and thin. I am very grateful for everything the club did in sticking by me and hopefully I am repaying them in how I am playing at the moment. There is no other club I would want to play for in the Premiership. O'Shea has noticed a significant difference to Care's attitude to life. Stuart [Lancaster] mentioned that Danny appeared on a kid's doorstep over Christmas and it wasn't a player appearance or anything. He just went up to Leeds and wished someone he had met a Happy Christmas. It's the type of bloke he is," O'Shea said. If you ask any pack of forwards what they need and they will say a little fella behind, sniping and shouting and screaming and being a bit of a practical joker. He will never lose that. But what he has gained is better decision-making. Knowing when and where to draw the line.