Chris Ashton's 5 Worst Moments

It has been a miserable week for Saracens wing Chris Ashton.

No sooner was the 28-year-old recalled to the England squad than he has found himself sidelined with a 10-week ban after being found guilty of eye-gouging Ulster's Luke Marshall, per BBC.co.uk.

The former rugby league man has been in fine form for his club and forced his way back up the pecking order after being deemed surplus to requirements for much of coach Stuart Lancaster's time in charge of the national side.

Now it looks as though he will be denied the chance to resume his international career in the forthcoming Six Nations unless he successfully appeals the lengthy punishment.

This is the latest moment to forget for the 39-cap wide man, who has had a few sour notes on the field in his time, as these five attest to.

5. Harangued by Haskell

Sportsmen on chat show sofas do not often provide the most entertaining anecdotes, and while this was hardly a side-splitter, it was a reasonably uncomfortable moment for Ashton when England team-mate James Haskell revealed the ex-Wigan man's strange shoe fetish.

After watching this clip you suddenly feel a rush of sympathy for the poor youngster charged with cleaning his boots.

4. Smashed by Sailosi

Saracens opened their 2014-15 campaign at Twickenham against Wasps.

It would have been the perfect stage for Ashton to prove the doubters about his defensive capabilities wrong.

And so he would have preferred not to have been confronted by Samoan powerhouse Sailosi Tagicakibau at full tilt.

The Wasps wing bounced Ashton off like a man barging through a set of decaying saloon doors.

3. Launched by Leota

Ashton was shoved over the advertising hoardings at Allianz Park by Sale Sharks' Johnny Leota after refusing to hand the ball over to the Samoan, who presumably wanted to take a quick lineout after Ashton had shepherded the ball into touch.

It happens plenty of times when players try to buy their team-mates some time by hanging on a bit too long to stop the other side from getting on with the game.

On this occasion Ashton was doing just that but was a little too close to the hoardings to withstand the might of a Samoan scorned.

2. Battered by Bobo

An earlier bit of niggle between Ashton and Newcastle win Gcobani Bobo was not forgotten by the Falcons' South African wing, who took his revenge on Ashton, then a Saints player, by cutting him in half after he accepted a pass standing still.

The force of the hit forced Ashton to lose control of the ball and sent his assailant back into position with a smile as wide as the River Tyne.

1. Floored by the Fist of Manu

Ashton can be known to have a short fuse at times, and he was riled by a high shot from England colleague Manu Tuilagi when playing for Northampton against East Midlands rivals Leicester.

A fist fight ensued during which Tuilagi landed the biggest blow, leaving Ashton with a swollen face, bandaged head and 10 minutes on the sideline for his part in the dust-up.