Saturday 10 January 2015 18:53, UK
Danny Care overshadowed his England scrum-half rival Ben Youngs as Harlequins beat Leicester 32-12 on Saturday.
The win at the Twickenham Stoop revived Harlequins' Aviva Premiership play-off hopes as Care, flanker Jack Clifford, wing Marland Yarde and replacement Tim Swiel all crossed in an important bonus-point victory that keeps Quins in the hunt for a top-four finish after a disappointing start to the season.
Fly-half Ben Botica contributed 10 points with two penalties and two conversions, but it took the final play of the match for Swiel to ensure the maximum five-point haul Quins deserved.
Leicester's points came from four penalties by Owen Williams, whose face was disfigured by a pronounced black eye, and on the evidence of the opening quarter they appeared to be set to clinch a fifth Premiership victory in six outings.
They established a 9-3 lead through the boot of Williams and had the better of the open play with centre Vereniki Goneva going the closest to scoring after a cruel bounce placed Mike Brown under pressure.
But by the 25th minute Quins had surged ahead, with a sublime offload from man-of-the-match Nick Easter as Tom Youngs pulled him down creating the opportunity for Care to breach the whitewash.
Care had picked his line perfectly with his momentum carrying him through a tackle from Adam Thompstone and a covering challenge by Youngs and over the line.
The try, converted by Botica, gave Quins the confidence to press for a second but Leicester defended resolutely and would have crossed themselves shortly after had Care not brought down Graham Kitchener following a smart pass by Williams.
Predictably, Easter was involved as Quins conjured a second try one minute before the interval with a big carry that forced the Tigers to infringe.
Ten metres out from the goalline, Care took a quick-tap penalty and fed Yarde and once the ball had been recycled Clifford was on hand to score with an outstretched arm.
Four minutes into the second half Quins grabbed their third, Easter claiming Williams' poor clearance and feeding Yarde.
A wall of Leicester defenders faced Yarde, but a hole appeared for the England wing to plot an angled path over the line for a score that will prove uncomfortable viewing for the visitors.
The bonus point appeared to have eluded Quins, only for an injury-time break by Brown to create the chance for Swiel to cross.
