Ashton: I don't want Lions role.Byline: By Alex Lowe Stuart Alexander "Alex" Lowe (1958-1999), was widely considered his generation's finest all-around mountaineer prior to his October 5, 1999 death in a massive slab avalanche on Shishapangma in Tibet. Ashton has ruled himself out of taking any role with the British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions (until 2001 known as the British Isles Rugby Union Team or more colloquially the British Lions on their 2009 tour of South Africa South Africa, Afrikaans Suid-Afrika, officially Republic of South Africa, republic (2005 est. pop. 44,344,000), 471,442 sq mi (1,221,037 sq km), S Africa. . Ashton's predecessor Andy Robinson was criticised for taking a coaching job with the 2005 Lions in New Zealand New Zealand (zē`lənd), island country (2005 est. pop. 4,035,000), 104,454 sq mi (270,534 sq km), in the S Pacific Ocean, over 1,000 mi (1,600 km) SE of Australia. The capital is Wellington; the largest city and leading port is Auckland. . England have a tour to Argentina pencilled in for the summer of 2009 and, two years out from the next World Cup, Ashton insists his responsibility would lie with the red rose. He said: "I look at the way forward in three stages. "In 2008 there is the Six Nations and the New Zealand tour, the next period is to the end of the 2009 Argentina tour and then we ought to be in a good position to move forward to the 2011 World Cup. "There are short, medium and longterm objectives over the next four years. "If I am still England head coach I will not be involved in the Lions. I will go to Argentina." Ashton was officially reappointed as England head coach on Wednesday along with his two World Cup assistants John Wells and Mike Ford. There were suggestions during the tournament that their working relationship was not always constructive but Ashton insisted they are the right team to take England forward. "I don't want to be surrounded by yes men," said Ashton. "I think it would be foolish not to continue and let not only the team develop but the coaching team develop as well." Ashton will resist any temptation to throw all England's bright young stars straight into the Six Nations. England have a highly promising generation on the verge On the Verge (or The Geography of Yearning) is a play written by Eric Overmyer. It makes extensive use of esoteric language and pop culture references from the late nineteenth century to 1955. of breaking through to the international scene, most of whom Ashton worked with when he ran the national academy. But while he is looking to develop a ground-breaking England side, Ashton also wants a winning England side and the experienced old heads like Josh Lewsey or Mike Tindall will still have a place. "The players coming through are very promising. But I have learned that if you throw in too many young players all together most of the time they sink, often without trace," said Ashton. "We still have some exceptional experienced players who still want to play for England. "I don't believe in four-year cycles. I want to win rugby matches." CAPTION(S): LOOKING AHEAD... Brian Ashton. |
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