Wade equals Premiership rugby record with 101st try

Christian Wade, the 35-year-old winger for Newcastle Red Bulls, scored against Sale in England's top-flight rugby union competition, the Premiership (Prem), to reach 101 career tries and equal the all-time record held by former England winger Chris Ashton. Newcastle travel to Saracens next Saturday, where Wade has the chance to take the record outright.

The road to the record

Wade became only the second player to reach 100 Prem tries in the previous fixture, when he scored a hat-trick away to Exeter Chiefs. Ashton's total of 101 had stood for more than three years.

Wade scored his first Prem try as a teenager for Wasps in May 2011, in an away defeat to Exeter. He scored 82 in total for Wasps and finished as the league's top try-scorer, outright or jointly, in three seasons: 2012-13, 2016-17 and 2017-18. Wasps lost the 2017 final to Exeter at Twickenham.

In 2018 he moved to the United States to join NFL side Buffalo Bills through the International Player Pathway. He featured in pre-season and on the practice squad but never played a full NFL game, and was released after three seasons. He then spent two seasons at Racing 92 in Paris, scoring 10 tries, before returning to the Prem with Gloucester, adding 11. Later he spent six months with rugby league club Wigan Warriors.

Wade's own view

Wade said the record matters more to other people than to him, describing tries as a product of the team performing well. He credits his physical longevity to advice from former Wasps and England centre Riki Flutey to invest in his own team away from the pitch.

His contract at Newcastle expires at the end of the season, so his future is uncertain. He said he wants to keep playing for as long as he has the energy.