Danny Care insists Harlequins are heading into 2018 with smiles on their faces after hammering Northampton Saints at Twickenham.

Quins ran in seven tries as Saints were consigned to a seventh successive Premiership defeat as they were beaten 50-21, with Care’s first score of the match securing the bonus point in the first half.

Dave Ward crossed for the opening try with Charlie Walker and Tim Visser also scoring before the break.

Visser and Care added their second tries after the break before Matt Luamanu notched Quins’ seventh, as teenage fly-half Marcus Smith scored 15 points from the boot.

Victory marked Quins’ sixth league win of the season to move them up to seventh in the Premiership table, narrowing the gap on the top six to just two points.

John Kingston’s side will travel to Sale Sharks next weekend for their first fixture of 2018, and Care is confident their fine form can continue.

“It was a great win and a great performance, but it’s one game and we’ve got to back it up now against Sale,” said Care.

“It was great to score 50 points with some good rugby and a good win.

“We focused on our basics and didn’t give away too many penalties, especially in the first half, and we looked after the ball.

“When we do that, we can cause problems and it helped us get the win.

“It’s great fun when the boys are playing with a smile on their face. Playing at Twickenham, you’ve got to enjoy it and we were back to our offloading best.

“The boys were loving being out there and what can’t you love about playing in front of 77,000 at Twickenham.”