ASHTON’S RAP SHEET

cards 2008: in Banned his first for season a week as for a rugby picking union up three professional yellow at Northampton.

MAY 2011: Had an on-field altercation with Manu Tuilagi before being brutally punched in the head by the Leicester player.

OCT 2011: Accused of sexual harassment by a hotel worker during the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Fined £5,000.

DEC 2011: Pulled Leicester’s Alesana Tuilagi into touch by the hair which sparked a brawl. Banned for four weeks. OCT 2012: Banned for a week for a dangerous tackle on Northampton’s Vasily Artemyev. MARCH 2013: Sin-binned after a high tackle on Harlequins flanker Maurie Fa’asavalu. Fifth sin-binning of the season. Receives a ban for shocking disciplinary record.

JAN 2016: Banned for 10 weeks for making contact with the eyes of Luke Marshall. Misses Six Nations. SEPT 2016: Banned for 13 weeks after biting Northampton’s Alex Waller. AUG 2018: Sent-off for fighting in a pre-season game against Castres.