THIS year’s rugby Crescent Head Sevens will be one of the best yet, organisers say.
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The tournament, hosted by the Kempsey Cannonballs has so far attracted 34 teams from Queensland to Sydney and the NSW South Coast.
Established in 2004, this will be the eleventh running Sevens of what has become a significant annual fixture in the rugby union calendar.
“The Sevens competition was put together a number of years ago by James Lancaster who played rugby in Sydney,” Cannonballs’ president Brad Taylor said.
“He got together with friends some 13 years ago and pulled some players and money together and hosted the first official Sevens tournament in 2004.”
The Crescent Head Sevens boasts over $16,000 in prize money with more than 1000 players, coaching staff, match officials and support staff set to roll into the beachside town for the event.
“At the moment we are probably one of the richest in prize money in Sevens tournaments in this area and we will be hosting a quality field,” Taylor said.
“There’ll be teams from Sydney and Queensland clubs including a host of others from the North and Mid North coast of NSW,” Taylor said.
“The men’s teams all be vying for the main premier prize of $7000 which goes to the winner.
“We’re still securing teams but currently there is a field of 27 men’s teams and seven women’s teams with most of the local clubs involved.
“Some of those clubs include Coffs Harbour and Port Macquarie however, like last year, there will also be an international team from Fiji who are huge and hard to beat.”
Each match is played in two seven-minute halves, making the tournament a fast-flowing event.
The men’s teams will play two qualifying matches, with the sides winning both moving on to the eight-team premier competition. The eight sides winning one match will contest the ‘bowl’, with the next eight playing for the ‘plate’ and the remaining six vying for the ‘lid’.
Taylor said there’ll be over 1000 people coming to Crescent Head for the Sevens with a lot of money in their pockets making it not just good for the club, but for business and tourism in the Macleay Valley.
“The community supports us well and we get a good local crowd that wouldn’t normally watch rugby but come out for the Sevens,” Taylor said.
“On top of that another 1000 people involved in the Sevens including the teams are coming to Crescent Head and Kempsey which is great for the local economy.”
The Sevens will take place on Saturday, February 20, at the club’s ground, the Ian Walton Fields, on Crescent Head Rd starting at 8am
