Dylan Hartley looks on© Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

Dylan Hartley says the last thing he wants is sympathy after he was booted out of England's Rugby World Cup squad for his latest misdemeanour.

Hartley was handed a four-week ban for headbutting Jamie George in the Northampton-Saracens Aviva Premiership semi-final and Stuart Lancaster opted to remove him from the World Cup mix as he would have missed their three warm-up matches and the opener against Fiji. The four-week ban took Hartley's cumulative total of suspensions to 54 and the hooker has vowed to move on from this setback.

"Am I gutted about missing the World Cup? Stupid question - of course I am," he told The Sun. "But let me say straight away that I don't want, or expect, any sympathy for my ban over the incident with Jamie George.

"I've got to accept it and move on. Set new goals and targets and get to work. This is my situation and s*** happens. You deal with it and move on."

The removal of Hartley from the World Cup squad sees him miss two milestone events in two years. He missed out on the 2013 British & Irish Lions tour after he was given an 11-week suspension for his red card in the Premiership final that year.

"I've been unlucky with getting it wrong on the big stage a few times now," he added. "Maybe it's down to emotions? I know that I care so much when I play and, the bigger the game, the harder I probably try."

And Hartley has vowed to continue pushing for England selection.

"There is absolutely no truth in the speculation I may quit international rugby," he said. "I feel I can still contribute and as long as Stuart Lancaster thinks that too, that's all that matters. I need to channel my hurt into training because, when the World Cup starts, I need to be in a good place fitness-wise in case of injuries."