Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Brian Ashton | ||
Date of birth | September 5, 1974 | ||
Place of birth | Sudbury, Ontario | ||
Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | ||
Playing position | Defensive Midfielder | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1998–2004 | Toronto Lynx | 159 | (13) |
2002 | → Mississauga Olympians (loan) | 3 | (0) |
National team‡ | |||
1991 | Canada U17 | 2 | (0) |
1992 | Canada U20 | 5 | (1) |
1994 | Canada U23 | 4 | (0) |
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of January 02, 2015. ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of n/a |
Brian Ashton (born September 5, 1974) is a former Canadian soccer player who played notably with the Toronto Lynx, and is currently the Ontario Soccer Association Region 6 Head Coach.
Ashton began playing professional soccer with the Toronto Lynx of the USL A-League in 1998 the second year of the franchise`s inception. He made his debut for the club on April 9, 1998 in an exhibition match against the Rochester Rhinos. Over the years with the club Ashton played a prominet role with the franchise on and off the field. During his tenure with the Lynx he was awarded the Toronto Lynx Fan Favourite award a record five times including a Public Relations award. He held the record for most club appearances for the Lynx, until he was surpassed by David Diplacido in 2006. In the 2000 USL A-League season he assisted Toronto by reaching the post season for the second time in the franchise`s history. In the playoffs Ashton scored a goal in the conference quarterfinals against the Long Island Rough Riders, which resulted in a 2-1 victory. The Lynx playoff run came to an end in the Eastern Conference Final against the Rochester Rhinos in a 2-1 loss on aggregate.
Once the 2002 A-league season came to a conclusion, Ashton was loaned to the Mississauga Olympians of the Canadian Professional Soccer League. He made his debut on September 11, 2002 in a Open Canada Cup match against the Toronto Croatia.He helped the Olympians secure a playoff berth by finishing second in the Western Conference, but unfortunately were defeated by the North York Astros in a wild card match. On February 12, 2004, Ashton announced his retirement from professional soccer after he was offered a regional coach of youth development position with the Ontario Soccer Association.