Harlequins and Leicester Tigers played out a 34-34 draw in the Big Game after Dan Cole scored a last-gasp try at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham.
An incredible Gallagher Premiership Rugby match worthy of the huge stage finished with Handre Pollard levelling the game for the Tigers with a conversion in the 80th-minute.
Danny Care, who has played in all 16 Big Game fixtures for Quins, relished the opportunity and spoke to TNT Sports following the match about it being potentially his last.
“We are disappointed, but we bounced back from last week when we were awful against Gloucester, so we’ll take three points today,” he said.
“There is nothing like it in club rugby, I am really proud of Harlequins being the pioneer, we were brave 16 years ago doing it and it keeps getting bigger and better every year.
“It is so special we get to walk from our home to our second home with that many Quins fans lining the streets. I’m not going to get that when I retire.
“You never know [about retirement]. We still have a few conversations to have. With days like today, you think ‘I’m never going to get to do that again’. So I don’t want to give it up if I still feel like I can do it. I still feel I can help the team, and I won’t get that reception in my next job.”
Care continued: “I feel good. I’ve invested in my body a little bit. I’ve bought a sauna, an ice bath, and a hot tub.
“You saw Mike Brown out there tonight, 39. We had a few texts today saying ‘Let’s prove to these young kids that we can do it’.
“But I still love it, I still love playing for this club. And playing on days like today at this amazing stadium are why I still want to play the game.”
Smoke from the pre-match entertainment at Twickenham was still floating in the air when Leicester opened the scoring with a penalty, but the hosts responded quickly with a superb bit of skill from Marcus Smith, with his offload finding Jack Walker on the inside to stroll over untouched.
Leicester hit back with two tries through Ollie Hassell-Collins and Solomone Kata, before Cadan Murley finished off an incredible length of the field try for Quins.
Smith and Pollard, both on their A-game, traded penalties and conversions and Freddie Steward continued his resurgence as one of the country’s best full-backs with a try to give Leicester the lead.
An exciting game died down slightly with a cagey 27-27 scoreline, until Quins exploded with Murley’s second try thanks to some deft touches and passing by Alex Dombrandt in the wide channels.
There was a huge roar for Quins after they shut down a Leicester maul six minutes from full-time and the Tigers fans responded by applauding Dan Cole taking to the field.
The 37-year-old paid back the support by squeezing over for a try with one minute left on the clock, and Pollard slipped the conversion in off the post to finish the game 37 points apiece.
“The results are mad,” Care added. “Saracens took a beating, and Bristol who have been on fire took a beating at home. So you’ve just got to try and stay in the fight and pick up wins or points whenever you can.
“We would have liked five today, we got three. It’s not the end of the world, but we know there are some really good teams in this league so we have to keep getting better and better.
“Tough game away in Newcastle next weekend, they’re not going to make it easy for us but hopefully, get up there and have a good performance again.”
‘Keeps us close to the top’ – Cheika
Three points for Leicester ensures that they keep pace with the top four teams, especially as Saracens and Bristol suffered heavy losses to slow down their play-off progress.
Michael Cheika spoke to TNT Sports after the game, and said he was happy to take the three points and keep his side within touching distance of the leading pack.
“It is always points gained,” he said. “It keeps us close to the top group of teams. It was a hard decision to make there at the end, whether we went for the five or stayed with the three. But I think the way some things had gone against us in the game, we hung in there nicely. We’ll take this three and stay close.
“It is not a point to prove in particular. We are trying to build something in the longer-term in terms of attitude and the way we approach the game.
“I think we are learning different situations all the time. This week we were much tougher and more physical, but I would still like to be more physical. But I think we hung in the game and our mentality stayed strong. To tie it up at the death was worthwhile and I think from an attitude point of view we took some steps forward.”
The Tigers host Exeter Chiefs next weekend before heading back into the Champions Cup and facing tough tests from Ulster and Toulouse.
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