Chris's debut season in rugby union was nothing short of sensational. From his try-scoring first touch of the ball against London Welsh in September to the six tries against Launceston on the final day of the season, the name Ashton was a regular on the score sheet. All in all he scored 41 tries - 39 of these were in the league and set a new record for the English leagues.

After a relatively quiet 2008/09 - even though he was top try scorer in the European Challenge Cup - Chris burst into Guinness Premiership rugby in 2009/10. Far and away the league's top try scorer he also crossed the line six times in the Heineken Cup.

As if that wasn't enough, Chris was named the Guinness Premiership Player of the Season, won the RPA Try of the Season and made his England debut in the 6 Nations trip to Paris.

After scoring his first England try against Australia during the 2010 summer tour, Chris scored a brace as the Wallabies came to Twickenham for the Autumn Internationals, including the IRB Try of 2010 and when the 6 Nations came around he wasted no time in chasing down a competition record.

Two tries in the campaign opener against Wales were followed by four more in a single game against Italy, which not only made him the first England player to do so in an international since Ronnie Poulton in 1914, but also saw him level a tournament record of six tries held by Will Greenwood and Shane Williams.

Upon his return to the Saints, Chris' swallow-diving antics continued as he added another six tries in nine appearances and finished as second top try-scorer in Aviva Premiership Rugby, despite making just 12 appearances. It also proved enough for Chris to pick up the number 14 jersey for the Sky Sports and ESPN Dream Teams.

A call up to England's Rugby World Cup squad was inevitable and despite a disappointing quarter final exit, Chris did what he did best - scoring tries. The winger started all five games in New Zealand and crossed six times, including a hat-trick against Romania, making him joint leading try-scorer for the competition.