Chris Ashton
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| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Chris Ashton | |
| Date of birth | 29th March 1987 | |
| Place of birth | Wigan, England | |
| Height | 1.81 m | |
| Nickname | Ashton | |
| Position | Full Back, Winger | |
| Youth clubs | ||
| Wigan Academy | ||
| Professional clubs* | ||
| 2004- | Wigan | |
| National team | ||
| 2005- | England | |
|
* Professional club appearances and (tries) |
||
Chris Ashton is a rugby league player for the Wigan Warriors of the Super League. From next season (September 2007) he will play Rugby Union for Northampton Saints. Ashton came through Wigan's scholarship programme and played in Wigan's Academy U18s in 2003. He was selected for the 2004 Academy Origin Series and the 2004 victorious England Academy U-18s tour to Australia.
After impressing in the academy, where he scored 27 tries in 23 games, he made his Super League debut against Hull in June 2005, at the age of 18. He has since made 31 appearances for the Warriors, scoring 17 tries.
Chris Ashton was brought into the Wigan Warriors squad at the start of 2006 as replacement for the injured Kris Radlinski. Ashton had impressed on his debut for Wigan in 2005, but in 2006 he showed good skill, pace and talent and impressed many Wigan fans and people within rugby league. He finished the 2006 as Wigan's leading try scorer and his support play through out the season was excellent, and although some criticisms were made about his defensive abilities, he earned a call into the England squad at the end of the year. Ashton was one of the most consistent players for Wigan during a disappointing Super League XI season and was a contender for the Young Player of the Year award. Ashton finished the 2006 with 15 tries form 29 appearances making him the leading try scorer for Wigan Warriors in 2006.
Chris was given the number 1 shirt at the start of 2007 despite the arrival of former Bradford Bulls full back Michael Withers. Previously the number 1 shirt was worn by Kris Radlinski and had been for 12 years and many people believed that Ashton had the talent to be a good replacement for Radlinski. Chris made a mixed start to the 2007 season, he was criticized for his poor defence under high kicks and made errors during the pre-season friendlies and the 28-32 loss to Bradford Bulls in round 3 in which he was also sin binned for a professional foul.
On March 19th 2007 it was announced that Ashton had signed to play Rugby Union for Northampton Saints for a reported £140,000 a year, more than double the offer that Wigan put in to retain his services. Ashton is due to begin his union career at the start of the 2007-8 season.
[edit] Trivia
- His father Kevin Ashton played for Wigan Rugby Union Club
- His brother David Ashton is a Centre for Swinton Lions
- Ashton's granddad was a successful Gaelic footballer.
[edit] External links
| Wigan Warriors - Current Squad |
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1 Ashton | 2 Calderwood | 3 Bailey | 4 Withers | 5 Richards | 6 Barrett | 7 Leuluai | 8 Fielden | 9 Higham | 10 Paleaaesina | 11 Hock | 12 Fletcher | 13 O'Loughlin | 14 Vaealiki | 16 Millard | 18 Prescott | 19 Hansen | 20 Goulding | 21 Hill | 22 Tomkins | 23 Colbon | 24 O'Carroll | 25 Mcilorum | 26 Coyle | 27 Gleeson | 28 Flanagan |
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