Rich prize is England comeback
Ashton tells Eddie: You don’t have to watch me in action.. trust me that I’m fit and ready for England duty
to assure Jones that the way he lives his rugby life means he will be ready for England if called upon.
“I feel good, really good,” he said. “I’ve had a lot of time to train and put myself in a good position. I don’t see it as a worry for me at all.
“Being unable to play has been a shocker, it’s been really tough. But it’s not like I’ve not been out there. I’ve been on the field a lot, training all the time.
“It’s in preseasons when you have time off, that’s when lads lose their timing. But I never really drop off, even preseason I don’t really stop.
“I’m a bit of a weirdo like that.”
England need a lift after losing key forwards Billy Vunipola and Joe Launchbury to injury.
Nathan Hughes, who appears before disciplinary chiefs tonight, is set to also be ruled out.
Recalling the livewire Ashton would undoubtedly raise spirits but he has only Saturday’s home game against Connacht to shake off the rust and state his case.
“I don’t see why not,” replied Ashton, when asked if he seriously thinks he can be firing on all cylinders by Saturday fortnight.
“A lot of lads have long lay-offs. If you’re mentally where you need to be…”
Jonah Holmes, 26, underlined the point when called up by Wales despite missing Leicester’s start to the season – to perform best man duties for his brother.
Holmes is nephew of the late Andy Holmes, who won rowing gold medals at two Olympics with Sir Steve Redgrave.
v7.45pm RICHIE MYLER will get an unlikely second chance for England in Leigh tonight when he faces France six years after his last cap.
The Leeds scrum-half, 28 – named the Rhinos Player of the Year in a difficult campaign at Headingley – had booked a family holiday to Dubai this autumn after believing his international career could be over.
But injuries to a host of half-backs including Gareth Widdop, Luke Gale and Danny Richardson has handed him his first full appearance since 2012.
Myler said: “It was getting to that stage where I thought my chance had gone.
“I never gave up. There were a few people in front of me, but that’s sport. I’ve got a point to prove.”
Coach Wayne Bennett confirmed that places for the opening Test with New Zealand on October 27 are still up for grabs, with Jonny Lomax and George Williams sitting out tonight’s match.
Myler said: “I get first crack at it and it’s up to me to take the opportunity.
“It’d be great to play against the Kiwis, but my focus is just on delivering on Wednesday so I’m in with a chance.”
Bennett will use four members of the England Knights squad that heads to Papua New Guinea for the match, with Grand Finalists from Wigan and Warrington unavailable. ENGLAND: Shaul, Johnstone, Lyne, Percival, McGillvary, Myler, Connor; Graham, Hodgson, T Burgess, Holmes, Whitehead, G Burgess. Subs: Milner, Thompson, Mulhern, Sutcliffe FRANCE: Gigot, Bergal, Ader, Miloudi, Marcon, Fages, Robin, Goudemand, Barthau, Margalet, Curran, Julien, Baitieri. Subs: Sangare, Belmas, Escamilla, Da Costa