The event is the longest running club organised tournament in Europe and with a prize fund of €20,000 has gained a fantastic reputation.
Over 8,000 players, spectators and people of Kinsale enjoyed two days of competitive rugby including over 200 matches, as well as fun and festivities that Kinsale always attracts. On Saturday Munster and Irish Internationals, Peter O’Mahony, Conor Murray, Ian Keatley, David Kilcoyne and former All Black and Munster player Doug Howlett dropped down to Kinsale RFC to enjoy the rugby and festival atmosphere, much to the delight of supporters. The Heineken Kinsale 7s generates a massive boost to the local economy at the start of the tourist season and is staffed entirely by volunteers. The ‘Exile Warriors’ won the Men’s Elite event, with ‘The Lightning Bolts’ claiming the Men’s Social title and ‘Bickie’s Babes’ emerging as Men’s Social winners. The Ladies cup was won by ‘Wooden Spoons’ whilst ‘University of Limerick’ won the Women’s Social. Event Partners included Hayes Caravan Services, Benchwarmers and EMC. Charity partners this year included the Wooden Spoon Children’s Charity and CUH Charity. All proceeds from collections during the Kinsale 7s will go towards patient care at Cork University Hospital. For further information on the work of the charity, please visit www.cuhcharity.ie The Heineken Kinsale 7s continues to increase its social media profile attracting over 100,000 facebook friends during last year’s event and many thousands of twitter followers. For further information and updates, visit www.kinsale7s.com of follow us on facebook and twitter.