Towards the end of the week in which he announced his imminent retirement, Chris Ashton cut a reflective figure on Friday as he sheltered from the rain at Welford Road.
‘I’m normally used to getting a lot of hate,’ said the former England wing with a smile. ‘I prefer that actually, so to get a lot of love is unusual. It has been too nice. It is weird. I don’t feel comfortable with it. Maybe it is the northerner in me. But it (praise) has been nice, don’t get me wrong.’
Ashton, 36, will call it quits at the end of the season and bring to an end one of English rugby’s most colourful careers. He really has been a Marmite figure, especially in the 15-a-side game. Why? It remains a pertinent question.
After starting in rugby league with Wigan, Ashton has been a try machine in both codes. He is the record try scorer in Premiership and European history. On 98 Premiership tries currently, he still has a chance to make it to three figures before he brings the curtain down on what has been a fine rugby journey.
He has played for six Premiership clubs and scored 20 tries in 44 England caps. But it has not always been plain sailing. There have been multiple bans. Ashton has often courted controversy.
Chris Ashton has opened up on his career after announcing his retirement from rugby
The dual code international has 20 tries in 44 caps for England earnt between 2010 and 2019
His acrobatic ‘Ash Splash’ celebration divided opinion. In 2016, Ashton was banned for a total of 23 weeks for gouging and biting. It ruined his chances of impressing Eddie Jones who had just become England head coach.
Asked if he had regrets over not playing more for England, Ashton said: ‘Without doubt. There was one ban in particular, the Ulster one (for gouging), where I didn’t do anything. I still got a long ban. Eddie had told me I was going to play. To this day, I have no idea why (I was cited). I was playing well at Saracens.
‘I was coming back into England with a new coach and then that happened. I am accused of something I didn’t do and I was banned. People see the dive as me putting my finger up to the crowd but that’s never why I did it. I did it to celebrate a good try. Why not do a dive?
‘You are saying you want characters in the game but then you knock the stuffing out of one who puts his head above the parapet. How do you grow the game and approach it from a different angle if you don’t have a couple of characters knocking around?’
Ashton was close to playing for England under Eddie Jones (pictured) but a ban got in the way
Ashton has certainly been a character. He has been box office wherever he has gone, both on and off the field, and should surely have played more for England. Rugby will miss him when he is no longer around.
‘Some days with England were tough,’ Ashton admitted. ‘You have moments when you really hate the situation you are in. A lot of it is to do with social media. I was playing for England when it all came flooding through.
‘It was like “F****** hell what is this? Why are people just hating you all of a sudden?” That was a shock to the system.
‘Me doing a stupid dive and social media turning up went hand in hand. It probably affected the way I approached things, unintentionally.’
After spells with Northampton, Saracens, Toulon, Sale, Harlequins and Worcester, Ashton joined Leicester last year for the final stop on his rugby journey. He immediately helped the Tigers to Premiership glory. It was his third English title to go with two Champions Cups and one Challenge Cup.
Ashton has scored 286 tries in 427 games across both codes. He could yet end his career with another Premiership crown. Ashton starts against Exeter on Sunday with defending champions Leicester still in the hunt for a play-off spot.
Ashton has scored 286 tries in 427 games across both codes and could win another Premiership
He admitted he has sometimes crossed the line but wants to do all he can to win on the field
‘I play the game on the edge,’ said Ashton, who hopes to stay in rugby in the future. ‘Sometimes people can look at that and think “Why is he being like that?”
‘I just do everything I can to win and sometimes that crossed the line. With experience, you learn.
‘I’ve done alright and exceeded what I expected. I’ve scored some tries and played in some great teams with great players. This season I’ve struggled a little bit with injuries I’ve never had.
‘Your legs start to not be able to do what you want them to. I’m a bit like an old dog now. I still want to go out but I don’t want to run around all day.’
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