Ben Vellacott
Ben Vellacott (born 28 March 1995) is a rugby union player who plays at scrum-half for Edinburgh Rugby. Born in England, he is qualified to play for Scotland through his mother and has represented them at age group level.
| Birth name | Ben Vellacott | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 28 March 1995 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Chertsey, Surrey, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 78 kg (12 st 4 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Ivybridge Community College West Buckland School Hartpury College | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Club career
Vellacott was a member of the Exeter Chiefs Academy, before switching to Gloucester. On 19 January 2017, Vellacott signed his first professional contract with Gloucester at Kingsholm Stadium.[1]
On 6 February 2019, Vellacott has signed for Premiership rivals Wasps from the 2019-20 season.[2] Vellacott first pulled on Wasps colours for the first time at the 2019 Premiership 7s, helping his side reach the final of the tournament for a sixth successive time, but an unfortunate ACL injury ruled him out of action for six months of the season.[3]
On 2 March 2021, Vellacott announced his move to Scotland to join Pro14 side Edinburgh ahead of the 2021-22 season.[4]
International career
Vellacott has played for Scotland at under-17 and under-18 levels - giving a man-of-the-match performance against England at the former age grade. He made his Scotland under-20 debut off the bench against Ireland U20s in January 2014 during the 2014 Six Nations Under 20s Championship and scored his side's only try, in the final minutes.[5] Ben was named in the Scotland U20 squad for the Junior World Championships in Italy in June 2015.[6]
Vellacott has focused on keeping his EQP status, to support his Premiership career, rather than immediate senior international experience.[7]
References
- "Gloucester scrum-half Ben Vellacott signs senior contract with the club". Gloucester Rugby. 19 January 2017. Retrieved 13 January 2017.
- "Ben Vellacott: Wasps to bring in Gloucester scrum-half". BBC Sport. 6 February 2019. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
- "Wasps' Ben Vellacott suffers major knee injury - four others to miss start of Gallagher Premiership season". Coventry Telegraph. 24 September 2019. Retrieved 11 March 2021.
- "Edinburgh sign Wasps scrum-half Ben Vellacott". Rugby Pass. 2 March 2021. Retrieved 11 March 2021.
- "Scotland U20s vs. Ireland U20s". ESPN Stats. 13 March 2017. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
- "Vellacott debut in Scotland's Junior World Championship 2015". Gloucester Rugby. 2 June 2015. Archived from the original on 14 March 2017. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
- "Why Ben Vellacott put his England Qualified Player status ahead of representing Scotland".