Event Program Cape Fear Regional Soccer Park Fear7s.com Tournament Patron July 6th & 7th, 2019 Welcome Ruggers Welcome to the 45th Annual Cape Fear Rugby 7’s Tournament! Thank you for joining us for this great event! We know that it is a large commitment of time, travel, and money to come to Wilmington and we are very grateful that you are here. With 79 teams playing this year, 2019 is looking to be one of the biggest years on record. 2019 also brings a new and improved location at the Cape Fear Regional Soccer Park. Cape Fear is proud to announce that we are hosting the inaugural Women’s Armed Forces 7’s Rugby Championship! We are very fortunate to be given this opportunity and are excited to watch high level rugby alongside our community. The Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marines, and Navy have all come to town to compete in a separate Women’s Military bracket. Once their champion is decided on Saturday, they will be integrated into the Women’s Elite bracket to compete for a Cape Fear 7’s Championship. We feel very lucky to be able to host our active duty military on the week of the 4th of July and are thankful not only for their service but for allowing us to be a part of this special event. We are happy to announce our continued partnership with NourishNC, a local charity that gives back to our great community. 1 in 4 children in New Hanover County struggle with Hunger. NourishNC’s mission is to “Provide healthy food to hungry children, empowering them to succeed in the classroom and in their community.” Please donate to this cause. As an incentive, the team who provides the most food will receive half off their entry fee for 2020. Our Women’s Elite division is once again loaded with national talent. Defending champion SCION, from Virginia, will have a tall order to fight off this year’s competition. American Rugby Pro Training Center (ARPTC) has made the 14-hour trip from Arkansas with 2 squads, along with the Atlanta Harlequins and NOVA. The Men’s Elite also brings in strong sides with the returning 3-time champion Old Toe of Charlotte. Continuing their quest to de-throne the defending champion is Moseley of Birmingham, England, along with NAV of Southern Pines, OPTIMUS from Atlanta, and the Navy Selects. The Men’s Open division has grown to a massive 28 team pool, with teams from all over the east coast. Defending Champion Star Spangled Hammered hopes to continue their streak while doing their best to celebrate the 4th of July in patriotic fashion. After Saturday pool play, the division will be seeded into 3 flights, where brackets of 8 teams will all compete for hardware. The Women’s Open has also grown and topped out at 24 teams this year. The division this year features teams from as far away as Maine, Kentucky, and Ohio. The commitment of these long-distance traveling teams is exciting and encouraging as we watch our sport grow. The women’s division will also be seeded into 3 flights on Sunday based on the Saturday scores and will give all teams a chance to fight for trophies. The High School divisions have again been filled and promise to provide great rematches of some of the great teams from last year. All high school matches will be played on Saturday, including their championship matches. With 79 teams competing in 127 matches on Saturday alone this is looking to be a great weekend. Wear sunscreen, drink water, and enjoy your rugby – however you plan to partake! Find your way to the beach if you can and get a little saltwater healing! Brooks Robinson Tournament Director The 45th Annual Cape Fear 7s Support our Sponsors Good Luck Fear! 35 North Lumina Ave., Wrightsville Beach July 6th & 7th, 2019 Tournament Rules 1. Teams must sign into the Tournament, either Friday, July 5th between 5:00 - 8:00pm or Saturday, July 6th prior to 8:00 am at the tournament venue. Motley/All star teams must provide a roster with names and CIPP numbers as well as a L200 coach. 2. The Elite divisions will have a prize money pool determined by the number of entered teams. The winning teams for both men’s and women’s divisions will receive a prize total that is half of the amount of entry fee money paid in their respective division. The defending Men's Elite and Women's Elite teams will have their entry fee waived for following year's Cape Fear 7s. 3. All USARFU participants must: - Be CIPP registered for 2019, wear matching, USARFU directed kit (rugby jerseys, rugby shorts and socks). Players may only play for only one team during the tournament. Teams must appear at the scheduled time of match with 7 players and compete in a 14 minute rugby match. Teams must not do anything that would jeopardize the continuation of this tournament at this location on an annual basis. 4. All matches will be played under the USA Rugby Sevens variation Laws. All teams may carry a tournament roster of 15 players. Substitutions must be done during stoppages and with referee permission. Rolling substitutes will be allowed. 5. Players registered in the Elite Division cannot play in any other division for any other team. If a team uses an Elite player, that match is automatically forfeit and the offending team is ineligible to advance to the championship round. 6. Match play begins both days at 9:00 am. Schedules will be strictly kept. Both teams must be at the halfway of the correct field for the coin toss at the half time of the prior match. If a team is not there for the coin toss, then the team that is present gets to choose both field and kick off. A Forfeit will be awarded after three minutes of tardiness from the scheduled match start time. Advancing from pool play: If it is clear, a distinct 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th then the following shall occur: - Winner of Pool A vs Fourth Place Pool B - Second place Pool A vs Third place Pool B - Third place Pool A vs Second place Pool B - Fourth place Pool A vs Winner of Pool B (Ceding is setup so that pool teams face different teams in knockout play) The Winner is defined as: the team with the most wins concluding pool play. If there are tied records within pools, then: • the 1st tiebreak is result of head-to-head competition • the 2nd is largest overall point differential (total points scored minus total points scored upon) in pool play • Then most tries scored in pool play • Then most goals (converted tries) scored in pool play • Rules Contunued... The 45th Annual Cape Fear 7s Tournament Rules continued 7. All knockout bracketing, as necessary, will be filled using the same method for ceding and advancing. Uneven divisions will have a different, (see website), means of advancing. 8. For all conversion kicks, the kicking team must have a receiver to catch the kick. That receiver must be a player who is currently playing. No fans, coaches or touch judges. Failure to use a correct receiver or a receiver will result in a free kick at mid- field to the non-kicking team. Conversion kicks may be taken from in goal onto the field of play. 9. Each club must furnish a touch judge for their pool and championship qualifying matches. 10. Tie matches will stand in Saturday round robin play. Tie matches in elimination play on Sunday will be decided by a succession of 5 minute sudden death periods. 11. Two yellow cards received in consecutive matches by the same player will result in disqualification of that player for the remainder of the tournament. Three yellow cards during the weekend by the same player will result in disqualification of that player for the remainder of the tournament. Any player disqualified from a match is automatically prohibited from participating in the remainder of the tournament. The offending player’s name will be submitted to Rugby South and their home union. A disqualification may be appealed to a committee of the Head Referee, the disqualifying referee and the Tournament Director. 12. All Tournament Matches will consist of 2 seven (7) minute halves, with a 1 minute halftime break. 13. There will be no sale of any items on the tournament grounds unless authorized by the tournament committee. 14. Any questions regarding these rules will be decided by the tournament director or his designee. 15. Failure to read and understand the tournament rules does not excuse the consequences of not following them. 16. Finalists must wear matching jerseys and shorts in all divisions. Failure to do so will result in a forfeit and the championship of that Division will not take place. 17. FAILURE TO ADHERE TO TOURNAMENT RULES RESULTS IN DISQUALIFICATION OF SAID TEAM FROM THE CHAMPIONSHIP ROUNDS. The Tournament Committee reserves the right to amend the rules due to unforeseen circumstances, and or due to a change of perspective. July 6th & 7th, 2019 Support our Sponsors 228 South College Road Wilmington, NC 910-791-2424 www.jeffgordonchevy.com The 45th Annual Cape Fear 7s Schedule of Events FRIDAY Team Check-in and First Round of the Armed Forces Championship 5:00 – 8:00 PM, Flytrap Downs, 209 Lake Drive, Wilmington Match schedule: 5:00 – Army vs Air Force 6:00 – Navy vs Coast Guard 7:00 – Army vs Marines Saturday Matches kick off at 9:00, Cape Fear Regional Soccer Park 205 Sutton Steam Plant Road, Wilmington Check in at 8:00 for teams unable to check in Friday NourishNC Food Drive begins Saturday Morning at 9:00 at HQ Tent The team with the most donations will receive half off the 2020 entry fee.