Scotland star dropped to bench for crucial Top 14 clash against Six Nations rival
There potentially won’t be a reigniting of rivalries between Antoine Dupont and Ben White this weekend.
Scotland scrum half Ben White has dropped out of Toulon’s starting XV for their Top 14 match with Toulouse this weekend.
It means we will not initially see a reigniting of the rivalry between the former Leicester Tigers man and French counterpart Antonie Dupont. The two number nines had a memorable spat during Scotland’s 50-40 win over Les Bleus at Murrayfield in this year’s Six Nations.
White was accused of taunting Dupont and celebrating mistakes by the French team on the day, something that visibly got under the skin of the 2021 World Rugby Player of the Year. It divided opinion amongst neutrals, especially following Dupont’s reaction in the aftermath of the fixture, with some accusing the Scotland man of gamesmanship and others branding the France skipper a sore loser.
Ben White drops to bench for Toulon but Blair Kinghorn named in Toulouse starting XV
Starting for Toulon at scrum half for Saturday’s match will be Baptiste Serin, one of Dupont’s alternates in the France team when the 29-year-old is unavailable. We may yet see White facing off against Dupont if the Scotland man replaces Serin while the starting Toulouse nine remains on the pitch.
However, it is more likely we will see White up against the visiting team’s replacement scrum-half, Japan international Naoto Saito, for the majority if not all of his game time. In terms of other representation, there will be a Scotsman in the starting line-up for Toulouse.
Blair Kinghorn returns to the team for the record 24 time Top 14 winners in this weekend’s match at the Stade Mayol. The former Edinburgh man was left out of their 23-man squad entirely for their 44-20 Champions Cup semi final defeat at the hands of Bordeaux Bègles.
The versatile back will start in the 15 jersey for the visitors, replacing Matias Remue, who drops to the replacements. It is a big game for the Scotland full-back and his club as they look to take a significant step towards a 25th league title.
Toulouse currently sit top of the standings in the league, 12 points ahead of second placed Pau with just four rounds of fixtures remaining. Toulon are currently eighth and 22 points behind the leaders.
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