Match Rules | Beast of the East

Beast of the East General Tournament Rules

Unless otherwise noted below, the tournament will be governed by the most recent World Rugby Laws of the Game for 7’s or 15’s style play.

The tournament will consist of Pool Play and Playoffs

15's

All Pool Play Round and quarter-final Playoff Round matches will consist of two 20-minute halves with a 5-minute halftime.

Semi-final and final Playoff Round matches will consist of two 25-minute halves with a 5-minute halftime.

Each team will be scheduled for at least two Pool Play Round matches.

In the event of a forfeiture, we cannot guarantee a second Pool Play match for the non-forfeiting team, but we will do our best to schedule one.

7's

All matches will consist of two 7-minute halves with a 2-minute halftime.

Each team will be scheduled for at least two Pool Play Round matches.

In the event of a forfeiture, we cannot guarantee additional Pool Play matches for the non-forfeiting team, but we will do our best to schedule one.

U19 High School + Youth

All matches will consist of two 7-minute halves with a 2-minute halftime.

HS matches will be governed by world rugby U19 variations.

HS Scrums can only be pushed 1.5 meters (free kick), or intentionally wheeled less than 45 degrees (more than 45 is a penalty).

HS Scrums must have even sides, if one team loses a forward to a card or injury, the opposing pack must also drop a player from the scrum.

Grade 7/8 matches will be full contact. Scrums and lineouts will be uncontested. Rucks will start as uncontested and can move to contested if both sides feel comfortable doing so.

Grades 3-6 will play with flags, no contact.

After Pool Play, teams will advance to the Cup, or Plate Playoffs. Ties in the standings will be broken using the following criteria, in order:

Record (4 points for a win; 2 points for a draw; 0 points for a loss; 1 point for a team that loses a match by 7 points or less; 1 point for a team scoring 4 tries or more in a match)

Highest cumulative points scored in pool play

Highest points differential (cumulative points scored for less the cumulative points scored against) among the pool matches

Coin Toss

Once the seeding has been determined, the top 4-8 teams will advance to Playoffs.
Brackets with a sufficient number of teams will include a Consolation Round for lower-seeded teams.

The top seeded team will play the lowest seeded team, the 2nd highest will play the 2nd lowest, and so on.
All matches will start at either the scheduled time or at the completion of the previous match, whichever is later.

If the previous match has ended and both teams are present at the field prior to the scheduled kick-off time, they are welcome to commence earlier than scheduled.

Teams are expected to be present at the field on which they are scheduled to play 10 minutes before the scheduled kick-off time for referee meetings.

Teams that are not present to play at their appointed time and location will forfeit the match by a 7-0 score (converted try).

It is the responsibility of the team captain to be aware of their team’s match schedule on both days. An official schedule for Sunday’s matches will be posted near the Main Tent and on the Tournament website.

All teams must provide their own competent touch judge.

All teams shall wear matching uniforms and full rugby dress.

An alternate uniform is required if an institution has registered two separate teams. The alternate kit need only be worn in the event the two sides play against each other.
Cup and Plate Playoff Matches
In the event of a tie at the end of regulation for any Playoff Round match, sudden death overtime consisting of two 5-minute halves will be played. The first team to score a point shall be declared the winner and advance to the next stage. If at the end of the two 5-minute sudden-death halves, the score is still tied, a kick-off* will determine the winner.

*Kick-Off Tie Breaker Rules

The two captains will toss a coin at the start of the kick-off. "Home" team will toss, "Visiting" team will call heads or tails. (The team closer to Portsmouth, RI is considered the “Home” team). The Winner of the coin toss will choose either the posts to be used, or the order of kicking (if they will kick first or defer to the other team). The Loser of the toss will choose the remaining option. Three kickers from each team will alternate kicking for goal at the same location. Kickers must be present on the field at the conclusion of play. The winner will be decided through a best-out-of-three format. The participants will kick from the 22-meter line directly in the center of the field. If both teams are still tied after the first three kicks from center, they will move to the left of the posts and kick three times from the intersection of the 15-meter mark and the 22-meter line. If there is still a tie after kicking from the left, the players will kick from the right of the posts at the intersection of the 15-meter mark and the 22-meter line. The teams will continue this progression until a winner is decided. The winner will be awarded 3 points to their existing score.
Players given a Yellow Card must leave the field of play for the following duration:

2 minutes of match time for matches consisting of 7-minute halves

5 minutes of match time for matches consisting of 20-minute halves

7 minutes of match time for matches consisting of 25-minute halves

Any player sent off with a Red Card must leave the field of play for the duration of the match and will be disqualified from further participation in the tournament.
15s
Teams are allowed to nominate up to seven (7) substitutes per match.

7s
Each side is allowed five (5) substitutions during a match.

Both 15s and 7s
In the event of a front-row substitution, the sub MUST be a qualified front-row sub. If the substitute player is not front-row qualified, the referee will move to uncontested scrums.

Any player removed and substituted may take no further part in that match but may play in subsequent matches.
Players sustaining a head injury resulting in unconsciousness will be placed into concussion protocol immediately by attending medical personnel and will not be allowed to return for the remainder of the tournament for their safety and well-being. A substitution can be made for the injured player. If the only remaining subs available are players who have previously been replaced, they will be allowed to return to the field for the injured player.

Players sustaining a head injury without losing consciousness will be taken off the field and assessed for a concussion. A substitute player can enter the match to replace the player being assessed for a period of 10 actual minutes. If the assessed player is determined to have suffered a concussion or does not feel they can or should continue play, the on-field replacement will become a permanent substitution. If a concussion is diagnosed, the injured player will not be allowed to return for the remainder of the tournament for their safety and well-being.
If a registered team does not show up for a scheduled match on either Saturday or Sunday, causing a forfeiture, that team will be ineligible to play the following year.
Profanity or vulgarity will not be tolerated as a part of pre-game chants or line-out calls.

Abusiveness towards a referee or tournament official may result in a team being disqualified from the tournament and/or future tournaments.
There is a zero-tolerance alcohol policy at the Beast of the East. Any student athlete caught disobeying the alcohol stipulations of this tournament, vandalizing or defacing public or private property, or found to have been arrested in any establishment for any reason during the Beast of the East weekend will be immediately reported to the appropriate member of their institution. This will further subject their team to an immediate ban from the Beast of the East for either a period of two years or until such time as that individual graduates or leaves the institution, whichever is longer.
Tournament Play may be postponed/canceled due to severe weather. In the event of a weather complication, match schedules may be altered by the Tournament Director. Any Tournament Schedule change due to weather or any other event affecting Tournament Play will be posted to the Beast of the East website by Tournament Staff. It is the responsibility of team captains to be aware of any change in Tournament Schedule. The Tournament shall not be held liable for any loss incurred by a participating team arising from any postponement/cancellation of Tournament Play due to any ‘Act of God’ event, e.g., flood, hurricane, tornado, or any other severe weather event.

All Rules are subject to change per the tournament director’s discretion. Any matters not covered by this document, the World Rugby laws of the game, or by a referee's decision, will be resolved by the Tournament Director and Head Referee, whose decision will be final.

HOSTED BY PROVIDENCE RFC FOR OVER 40 YEARS

Unless otherwise noted below, the tournament will be governed by the most recent World Rugby Laws of the Game for 7’s or 15’s style play.

The tournament will consist of Pool Play and Playoffs

All Rules are subject to change per the tournament director’s discretion. Any matters not covered by this document, the World Rugby laws of the game, or by a referee's decision, will be resolved by the Tournament Director and Head Referee, whose decision will be final.

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