Hosted annually by the Inverell Highlanders Club, the 7s tournament has been run as a local competition for the past five years.

However, this year the club has decided to host a huge weekend of rugby 7s, expanding team nominations to all over the east coast.

Already, teams from Sydney, Brisbane, Coffs Harbour and the Central Coast have expressed an interest in the action-packed weekend of March 9-10 at Inverell Rugby Park.

Jock Barnett, of Inverell Highlanders Club, said the competition will be offering equal prize money between the men’s and women’s divisions.

“We’re not sure if this has been done before,” he said.

“But we are trying to develop the women’s 7s competition, coming off the back of our girls getting a grand final win this season.”

“We decided on equal prize money to show how much we appreciate our women’s rugby, and that it’s a big part of the club.”

Team nominations are open for the men’s, women’s and U18s divisions, along with the opportunity for businesses to sponsor teams.

Barnett said the club usually hosted a 4WD expo to drive income for the coming season, however due to the drought it was cancelled.

“That was part of our decision to expand the 7s comp to try and drive some extra income into the club,” he said.

For more information, head to www.inverellhighlanders.com or like Inverell Rugby 7s on Facebook. 

Businesses interested in sponsorship can contact Jock Barnett through email at inverellsevens@gmail.com.