CHRIS Ashton will prove once and for all to Eddie Jones that he deserves to be on that plane to Japan according to former England wing Mark Cueto.
Ashton has the chance to impress the England boss over the next few days after being announced in a 29- man training camp.
The Sale wing meets up with the rest of the players at Pennyhill Park today on a mission to make up for lost time.
Ashton's hopes of adding to his 44 caps took a major blow when, having returned to the bench in Dublin and then made his first Six Nations start for six years, he sustained a calf injury which kept him out for two months.
He saw Jonny May enjoy a brilliant try-scoring Championship and also Jack Nowell and Joe Cokanasiga enhance their Test prospects.
Jones has intensified the battle for wing selection by also calling up Bath's Ruaridh McConnochie for his training squad. With Jones poised to finalise his official World Cup training party on July 4, it is crunch time for the 32-year-old.
Cueto said: “At the moment, Ash, right, seems to be on the edge of that England 23. He seems to have dropped down the pecking order a bit with the likes of May and Jack Nowell stepping up to the plate.
“He got injured at a really bad time in February. He was playing well and looked good in the Six Nations. At that time you would have said he was a shoo in for the World Cup. The niggly calf injury kept him out for a couple of months and now he faces a crucial week or so to really impress in training and I'm sure he can.”
Cueto insists the make up of Jones' squad could well change during summer. He said: “These World Cup camps are absolutely brutal. They are physical, intense and there are always injuries. So many things can change right up to the naming of the final squad and then in the build up to flying out to the World Cup. History has shown there are usually changes right up to the last moment because of an injury.
“I remember in 2007 poor Dave Strettle. He did the whole camp and was looking red hot. Then in one of the final training sessions before we flew over to France he tweaked his foot.
“The scan showed he had broken his foot and Paul Sackey came in having done no training and tore it up at the World Cup!”
▪Jack Nowell should be fit for the World Cup after having ankle surgery.
The 26-year-old picked up the injury playing for Exeter in the Premiership final. He had an operation on Tuesday and Exeter say they see “no reason why it should jeopardise him being involved at the World Cup”.
