Wade one try from Ashton's PREM record as Freeman looms as future threat

Christian Wade stands one try away from breaking Chris Ashton’s all-time Premiership try-scoring record of 101, with Newcastle Red Bulls hosting Sale Sharks at Kingston Park on Friday night in a Northern derby that could mark a historic moment for the 35-year-old winger.

Wade brought up his century with a hat-trick against Exeter earlier this month — mirroring the manner in which Ashton himself reached three figures while at Leicester in 2023. Ashton has held the record for four years, having overtaken Tom Varndell’s tally of 92 tries in 2022, but his time at the top appears to be measured in days rather than weeks.

Yet the more compelling long-term story may belong to the man closing in behind Wade. Northampton and England wing Tommy Freeman, joint leading try scorer last season with 18 alongside Noah Caluori, is tied at the top of the charts again this term with five tries — including a brace in Northampton’s 71-48 demolition of Bath. His overall Premiership tally stands at 60 tries from 89 appearances, a strike rate of one every 1.48 games.

Among all players to have scored 50 or more Premiership tries, Freeman’s strike rate is the best in the competition’s history. At his current pace, he could be approaching a century within two to three years — by which point Wade, whose union career was interrupted by stints in American Football and Rugby League, will in all likelihood have retired.

Sam Simmonds, the Exeter number eight who holds the single-season Premiership try record with 21 in 2021, has the second-best strike rate among top finishers at 1.54 from 91 appearances. Wade sits third at 1.56, fractionally ahead of Saracens’ Max Malins (1.59), with Ashton completing the top five at 1.78.

Another Northampton player worth monitoring is Ollie Sleightholme, who bagged a hat-trick against Bath in what was the second-highest scoring game in Premiership history. The 26-year-old England international needs five more tries to join the 50-try club, currently sitting on 45 from 70 appearances — a strike rate of 1.56 that matches Wade’s, despite a career repeatedly disrupted by injury.

Premiership top try-scorers by strike rate (min. 50 tries)

1. Tommy Freeman — 1.48 (60 tries / 89 apps)
2. Sam Simmonds — 1.54 (59 / 91)
3. Christian Wade — 1.56 (100 / 156)
4. Max Malins — 1.59 (63 / 100)
5. Chris Ashton — 1.78 (101 / 180)
6. Steve Hanley — 1.80 (75 / 135)
7. Cadan Murley — 1.93 (57 / 110)
8. Tom Varndell — 1.96 (92 / 180)
9. Vereniki Goneva — 2.00 (58 / 116)
10. Ollie Hassell-Collins — 2.00 (63 / 126)