For a scrum-half with a typically prickly personality on the pitch, Ben White is exceptionally polite when it comes to disagreeing.
At the age of 25, he has already overcome difficult obstacles. In 2021, after coming through the ranks at Leicester Tigers and making a Premiership debut at the age of 17, he was deemed surplus to requirements and was let go with two years left on his contract.
Two years later, London Irish fell into financial ruin. White, who had worked his way to the top of the pecking order, was sacked and joined Toulon. Channel hopping during the Six Nations can be 'annoying', as White knows from losing his luggage on the way back from Scotland's last loss to France. To deal with such stress, he needs to be a relaxed character who can roll with the punches. Right? Wrong, apparently.
"Um. No," laughed White, who will be at Toulon until 2026 after announcing a new deal last week, in an interview for The Telegraph Rugby Podcast. "I think people who know me would say I'm the opposite.
"It has been tough at times. A lot has changed, but no career is a straight line. One thing it has done is made me a more complete player and person."
White was born in Stoke-on-Trent and captained the England Under-20s. As recently as 2019, he came off the bench for England against the Barbarians at Twickenham, replacing Alex Mitchell to link up with Marcus Smith. Then, during the 2021 autumn internationals, while White was in his first year at Irish, he received a text from Gavin Vaughan.
Vaughan is Gregor Townsend's chief analyst and a prolific researcher of Scottish-qualified talent. It was he who famously scouted Huw Jones while he was playing for the University of Cape Town. White's eligibility was more obvious as he had been part of the Scottish Exiles program in his mid-teens and qualified through his grandfather. Yet that icebreaker would make way for exciting WhatsApp exchanges.
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"I had a phone call with Gregor and he talked about what his vision was for the team," White recalls. "He also talked about how I played, what I did well and what he thought I could do better.
"Then he sent me clips of games on WhatsApp over the next few weeks. I thought, 'Wow, this is brilliant. He clearly watches every minute of my matches'. It would be things like, 'These three phases were good, but why were you waiting for this ruck? What do you see?'
"The level of coaching, in terms of developing me as an individual, was brilliant. I was probably surprised by it. I remember thinking, 'God... I have to be good at every stage of this! Every pass, every kick, every movement of the ball.'"
Since then, Townsend's investment has paid off heavily. Simply put, White has played exactly as if he were aiming for accuracy on every phase. There have also been fairytale moments. White was included in Scotland for the 2022 Six Nations and promptly scored five minutes into a "crazy" Test arc against England after taking the field as a replacement for Ali Price with a head injury.
The following year, with his team trailing 20-12 at Twickenham, he rushed through for a crucial solo try, propelling Scotland to another Calcutta Cup victory. Supported by neat skills, White's game radiates tenacity. He is a feisty scrapper of a scrum-half.
"I'm not one to exude confidence or anything," White shrugs when asked if this attitude is intentional. "I'm just trying to do my job. I know that if I play with speed, play with passion and aggression and work hard without the ball, I will do my job well. I'm playing in an international match. Why wouldn't I work hard off the ball? Why shouldn't I try to win every moment? That's what you come here to do."
What about the confrontation with England? Does White rely more heavily on his competitive instincts?
"I'll be honest, not really," he says. "The emotion has to be there in every Test match. If you walk there and look at the crowds and the big lights and think, 'What am I doing here?', you are lost at sea. Yes, England are a very good team with brilliant individuals and I have played with and against these players for a long time, so you know how good they can be.
"One thing that has really helped me over the years is that we did that with Scotland [mental skills coach] Aaron Walsh. I also worked with someone at London Irish, Mike Roberts, and these guys helped me get to where I am today, finding the balance between, as they call it, the red and the blue.
"It's about finding the balance between being calm and collected in these moments, being on the edge with your aggression, but also being clear. In my work you have to think clearly. To play fast, you need to have a clear mind and follow the game plan. That really helped me with a few things. When I make mistakes during matches or when things don't go right, I have some things I can rely on and improve my game.
"When I go into those big games, I know that if I've done my preparation right and all the little things that go into the game, I can just go out there and play."
Scotland's current campaign is difficult to summarize. In White's words, they were "almost perfect" as they built a 27-0 lead over Wales before being awarded a barrage of penalties. They responded well against France. One goal for this season was to exert control. White, who ranks third in meters made over the entire tournament (821m), with Finn Russell leading the way (1,583m), completed a beautiful move that started when his own box kick was recovered.
However, the ending was heartbreaking. White was closer than most, and remembers Sam Skinner's confidence in the group; usually a clear sign that a try has been scored. But it didn't last and Scotland needs to get its championship back on track. White has seen the photos of that final attack, with questions about why the ball wasn't moved further. He remains phlegmatic.
"Look, once the referee makes the decision, we have to live with that," White said. "As fans you can be angry and angry, but as players it is at a standstill. In any case, it makes you look at the situation and how we could have controlled it better for next time. I've seen the stills of the whole field and people saying, 'You could have come through again.' Of course, hindsight is 20/20, and it's something we can work on when it comes to scanning that space... but if it's an attempt, you don't talk about it. That's sport sometimes."
Over the past two years, White has gradually established himself as Scotland's frontline scrum-half and complements Finn Russell. Although he takes nothing for granted, he thrives on an 'inner confidence' that has developed over time in the saddle.
"Gregor is brilliant and playing with Finn is fantastic because he takes the pressure off these games," concluded White. "The players you have around you at Scotland are great. You feel so relaxed on the field that if you want to try something, you can try something. If it doesn't work, someone will get their ass off to cover for you. That is a fantastic environment to be in."
He seems far too modest to say so, but White's craft and his consistency make him exactly the kind of player who in turn encourages others.
