BBC Sport rugby union news reporter Mike Henson:

It was widely expected Care would follow his former team-mate and friend Joe Marler into the sunset, hanging up his boots at the end of this season.

Those expectations were partly set by Care himself.

“I’m still a Harlequins player at the time of writing, although whether I make it to the end of another season remains to be seen,” he wrote in the autobiography released in the autumn.

“The pain in my knee and shoulder isn’t getting any easier and there are times when I’d rather be anywhere else than on a training ground. Rugby is no sport for old men.”

But, with the help of modern conditioning and recovery methods, players have been able to play longer.

Care’s former Harlequins team-mate Mike Brown, who will turn 40 this year, is still turning out for Leicester, while former Premiership stalwart Jimmy Gopperth is playing in the French second tier aged 41.

Care’s decision to stay on may affect succession planning at Quins.

In addition to Will Porter, they also have highly rated 18-year-old Lucas Friday as a scrum-half option. However, they were reported to have lined up Sale’s Raffi Quirke, external as an end-of-season replacement for Care.