Former England winger Chris Ashton has left Sale after reaching an agreement to terminate his contract early.
The ex-Saracens and Northampton star joined Sale from French Top 14 side Toulon in July 2018.
Ashton scored 20 tries in 44 England Tests, winning his last international cap in February last year.
In a statement, Sale revealed: "The club and Chris have reached a mutual agreement regarding the termination of his Sale Sharks contract and he will leave the club immediately.
They added: "Sale Sharks would like to thank Chris for his efforts whilst at the club and wish him and his family all the best for the future."
Code-swappers: 5 of the WORST Rugby Converts
RUCK takes a look at some of the people who have set a pretty low bar for rugby cross-code converts.
1. Lesley Vainikolo -Rugby League to Rugby Union
The 'volcano' never quite erupted in the 15-a-side game after switching codes in 2007. The former New Zealand international in rugby league won five caps for England in 2008, without scoring a try.
2. Henry Paul - Rugby League to Rugby Union
A turbulent career in both codes, Paul is also a former New Zealand international in rugby league but his appearances for England were dreadful. He returned for his rugby league swansong with Harlequins in 2006 before switching back to Leeds Carnegie to help them to achieve Premiership promotion in 2010. Now a commentator in league .
3. Sam Burgess -Rugby League to Rugby Union
Sam Burgess left the South Sydney Rabbitohs after he led them to the 2014 NRL Premiership to try his hand at Rugby Union and he made it all the way the Rugby World Cup, but he spent the majority of his time in the bench for the awful English side.
The video below makes it seem as though Burgess was some kind of Rugby Union god, but we can confirm that this was far from reality!
4. Benji Marshall - Rugby League to Rugby Union
Sam Burgess’ stint in Rugby Union can be classed a failure, but he was still able to represent his country and he was far from the worst league convert in the game they play in heaven.
That title belongs to Benji Marshalll – who managed to make enemies from the time that he signed with the Blues and he was nothing short of an embarrassment during his very brief stint in Super Rugby.
5. Israel Folau – Rugby League to AFL
Israel Folau joined Karmichael Hunt in the AFL after being offered a massive deal with the Greater Western Sydney Giants and despite his natural athleticism Izzy was never able to make it in the AFL.
Thankfully, his third code swap was far more successful and he has developed into a key member of the Wallabies side, but anybody that watched his kicking during the his time with the Wallabies would question how anybody ever thought he could make it in the AFL.
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- Jordie Barrett over Damian de Allende is far from being correct. The hype around Dupont is also overreaching, he's probably 4th in the world and has been since the 2023 WC. He also avoids certain matchups which is strange. The rest of the list is pretty good apart from minor subjective biases.JasonMarlow16-09-2026
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