Top gun Ashton still has so much to give
THIS colmn has always been a staunch supporter of the “record breaking” Chris Ashton, warts and all, even when he has tried our patience with some of his antics. Genius – and make no mistake, Ashton was, and is, a try-scoring genius – can sometimes be a little flawed or eccentric.
He has also played rugby with a smile, as if enjoying some private joke, and must have been a nightmare to play against in all respects but for us neutrals on the touchline watching he has entertained royally.
For what it’s worth, I make him the second greatest rugby league convert behind Jason Robinson – a genuine product of league who had no previous experience of 15-a-side rugby before making the switch. And a bit of me is fascinated at what additional try scoring glories he might have achieved had he been born ten years earlier and played during the Woodward era when the likes of Dan Luger, Ben Cohen and Robinson scored tries for fun.
His try-scoring feats are nonetheless worth repeating, possibly with power to add. A record 95 Premiership tries, a record 41 European tries, a record 24 Top 14 tries in a season for Toulon, 20 England tries in just 44 games, 24 Super League tries for Wigan RL as a youngster and three tries for England RL before moving to Union. That’s 206 elite tries right there before you even mention his Championship record of 39 in a season for Saints.
Ridiculously, there are people who have underestimated or lost faith in Ashton during his career, not least Stuart Lancaster and Eddie Jones with England. Only Martin Johnson backed him through thick and thin. Let’s put aside the stats for a minute and just concentrate on the rugby player pure and simple.
He was bloody quick – still is for that matter – but so efficient is his running style that he doesn’t seem like an out-and-out speed merchant.
No flailing arms, puffed cheeks, long hair trailing in the wind, just effortless gas, short range and long range. He is skilful, he makes those high speed chip and chases look routine but they are not, they are a high degree of difficulty honed from his days at John Fisher, the catholic school in Wigan that also gave us Shaun Edwards.
He doesn’t drop many catches, which might appear to be a nonnegotiable, but concrete hands have been the downfall of many gifted speed merchants.
Before the emergence of Antoine Dupont, he ran the best tracking lines in the business, in fact the first time I really clocked him was during his prolific Championship season with Northampton when he scored countless tries living on the inside shoulder of fly-half Stephen Myler.
Ashton has replicated that modus operandi everywhere he has played – at Saracens it was with Owen Farrell and Alex Goode, with England it worked best with Jonny and Toby
Flood and briefly at Toulon where his double act with Semi Radradra was as good as it gets.
Ashton is a myopic, self-absorbed try scorer and that’s a compliment by the way. He just knows exactly where a try should and will be scored and puts himself in position to execute that time after time. That’s a massive skill not a selfish vice. The vast majority of players haven’t got that nose for a try or shy away from the responsibility.
He’s got ticker. When not indulging in the splashdown, his exuberant but also ultra-efficient way of finishing off a score that is unchallenged at the death, he has mimicked the great Rory Underwood in the way he stooped low and operated inches off the ground when travelling at speed to get that vital touchdown.
He’s suffered his share of stray boots and elbows, unnecessary clouts to the head and crashed into more advertising hoardings than most in pursuit of yet another try.
Defensively on a bad day he could be all over the place, no question, but that was mostly a matter of flawed RL technique which was hard wired into his system.
A fiery temperament also meant that could be provoked into injudicious battles. At times he was harshly treated – that big ban for alleged gouging at Saracens was plain ridiculous – but he lived on the edge a little and as his career begins to wind down it has probably evened itself out.
A successful spell at full-back with Toulon made him a much more accomplished defender than before and it will surely be a matter of regret that when he returned from France he allowed nearly three seasons with Sale, Harlequins and Worcester to rather dribble away, seemingly unfocussed and uncommitted. Perhaps he was just sated, bored with the whole business of scoring tries for fun.
Thankfully he has rediscovered his mojo with Tigers and we await any further flourishes to his career with interest.