From how he qualifies for Scotland to the name of his Labrador
Ben White established himself as Scotland’s No 1 scrum-half during the 2023 Guinness Six Nations.
He will be hoping to hold onto his shirt for the Rugby World Cup as Gregor Townsend’s side prepare to take on both South Africa and Ireland in the pool stage.
A switch from Leicester Tigers to London Irish put scrum-half Ben White firmly on Scotland’s radar but after the Exiles went out of business, White has signed for Toulon where he could form a half-back partnership with Wales No 10 Dan Biggar.
Read more: Scotland Rugby World Cup squad
Ten things you should know about Ben White
1. Ben White was born on 27 May 1998 in Stoke-on-Trent, England. He stands at 5ft 11in (1.8m) and weighs 13st 10lb (87kg).
2. He competes for London Irish but has played for Doncaster Knights and Leicester Tigers.
3. White represented England U20 but has switched to Scotland for his senior international rugby.
4. The scrum-half qualifies to play for Scotland through a grandparent and was first named in Gregor Townsend’s squad for the 2022 Six Nations.
5. Gregor Townsend has described White as a “tough competitor”, saying: “He was at Leicester from a very young age and didn’t play that much for them over the last couple of seasons.
“But his move to London Irish has rekindled his career. He’s been excellent down there. He’s got an all-round game, the basics are very good and he’s a tough competitor who likes to defend, but has also got a break and an eye for a gap.”
6. He’s dating British tennis player Jodie Burrage and was pictured in her box on centre court during Wimbledon 2023.
7. White is the youngest player to ever compete in the Premiership for Leicester. He broke Ben Youngs’s record when he appeared in a match against Harlequins in 2016 when he was 17 years and 151 days old.
8. He has a black Labrador called Otto.
9. London Irish head coach Declan Kidney highly praised White when they signed him in 2021. He said: “He’s a really promising scrum-half, with great experience despite his age.
“We want to develop a group of young scrum-halves under the mentorship of Nick Phipps to bring the club forward. Ben knows a good few of the boys already from their time together with England U20.”
10. White supports football club Stoke City.
Download the digital edition of Rugby World straight to your tablet or subscribe to the print edition to get the magazine delivered to your door.
Follow Rugby World on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram