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England scrum-half Danny Care is available for Saturday's second Test against New Zealand, it is understood.
Care missed the 20-15 defeat in the series opener at Eden Park with a shoulder injury sustained during an accident in training that saw him fall over while attempting a grubber kick.
The 27-year-old has been passed fit and is set to start at the Forsyth Barr Stadium ahead of Ben Youngs with Lee Dickson supplying cover from the bench.
Joe Marler, Care's Harlequins team-mate and room-mate in New Zealand, confirmed the news on Tuesday.
"Danny's shoulder is good. He says it's back to where it was before he missed a kick and fell over on it," Marler said.
Show all 32 1 /32New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Israel Dagg 5 Not his best performance by a long way, as he couldn’t cope with the onslaught of high balls put on him by Burns. Hauled off after 54 minutes and was visibly disappointed.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Ben Smith 6 Kept quiet by England’s exemplary defence, and was rather starved of ball. Best chances came on the counter.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Conrad Smith 7 The match-winner did the basics to a high standard as always and his defence was solid. Knew he was in when he crept over in the dying minutes.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Ma’a Nonu 5 One powerful run into Burns was never really built on, and he was strangely subdued until he was replaced with 20 minutes to go.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Corey Jane 7 Looked to capitalise on any chance he got, and was lively down the left wing. His early chip forward nearly put in Dagg for the opening try, and was the better of the two wings.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Aaron Cruden 6 100 per cent penalty record, although he missed the touchline conversion late on. Tactical kicking was spot on as he tried to pin back England, but didn’t spark much in attack.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Aaron Smith 7 Kept England’s back-row on their toes with a couple breaks catching out Haskell and leading to chances for the All Blacks.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Tony Woodcock 5 Didn’t really make an impact and lost out in the battle with Wilson in the scrum. All Blacks were notably more stable following his departure.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Dan Coles 6 Has bulked up this season and his defence benefitted with some big tackles, but will be annoyed that one lost line-out blighted his record.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Owen Franks 6 Had a tough day in taking on Marler, but coped well and was a force in defence.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Sam Whitelock 4 Went missing on Saturday, with the lock having no effect in carrying the ball and conceding a penalty from which Burns converted. Will look to improve next week.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Brodie Retallick 7 His comments before the game nearly came back to haunt him before Smith saved the day. Showed good pace to sprint through the England defence late on and set-up the platform for the match-winning try.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Liam Messam 6 Was physically imposing especially on the England back-line, but non-existent with the ball in hand.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Richie McCaw 6 Popped up everywhere as always but uncharacteristically missed three tackles. A hard day’s work and will be more relieved than any to get the win.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Jerome Kaino 8 Outstanding on his return to the New Zealand side after a spell in Japan, and a number of England players will be feeling the effects of his all-out defence in the morning.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Best off the bench: Wyatt Crockett 7 Steadied a New Zealand pack that was starting to fade quickly in the second-half. Nullified England’s scrum advantage.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Mike Brown 7 Made a few uncharacteristic handling errors early on, but grew into the game and by the end was back to his counter-attacking best.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Marland Yarde 6 Kept quiet and wasn’t able to capitalise on few chances that came his way. Can’t be blamed for late yellow after sprint back to tackle a charging Retallick.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Manu Tuilagi 7 Came alive in the second half that saw one run beat four flailing defenders. Made the most of a fortuitous charge down in the first half.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Kyle Eastmond 6 Second-half break nearly led to a try for England. Coped well in his biggest game of his young career.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Jonny May 6 Backed himself to beat the All Blacks’ defence when he got his hands on the ball, but will do well to hold onto his shirt next week with Chris Ashton available.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Freddie Burns 8 Started brilliantly and his peppering of high kicks onto full-back Israel Dagg was a key reason in England’s early success. 100 per cent from the tee helped England’s cause.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Ben Youngs 7 Provided good ball for the first 50 minutes but appeared to tire thereafter. Box-kicking was good, but will face a task to make the 23 next week if Care recovers.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Joe Marler Stepped up in the absence of Mako Vunipola and was a rock in the front-row. His full 80 minute showing showed his importance to the pack.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Rob Webber 7 Very good at the line-out as he clicked with Parling, but could have done with upping his work rate around the park. Still, a good showing.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings David Wilson 6 Started to take the game to Woodcock in the second half in the scrum that saw his opposite man replaced, but three handling errors blighted his game.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Joe Launchbury 7 Did a lot of the hard work on his first visit to New Zealand, and will be better off for the experience.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Geoff Parling 7 Showed his line-out prowess in full force as he bossed the set-piece, and was a calming influence to have back in the pack. Will be unfortunate if Lawes comes back in for him next week.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings James Haskell 7 Started very brightly as he looked to smash anything in black, but ill-discipline began to creep back into his game as the match wore on. A very good performance though on his deserved return to the international fold.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Chris Robshaw 7 For once outshone in the England back-row, but his renowned work rate and commitment were still there to see. Showed lovely hands at time and linked well between the forwards and the back.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Ben Morgan 8 Billy Vunipola’s absence wasn’t missed as Morgan enjoyed a tremendous game. Ran hard and tackled very well, with a 30m break from his own try line typical of his performance.
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New Zealand 20 England 15: Player ratings Best off the bench: Danny Cipriani 6 A welcome return to the international stage for the fly-half, who showed quick feet to break the line to win a penalty, which he duly converted.
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"It was gutting that something as minor as that could make him miss out on the first Test, but he's back fit now and available for selection."
Care's energy and quick thinking were sorely missed at Eden Park and he will resume his half-back partnership with Owen Farrell in Dunedin.
PA
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