The Borders Sevens Circuit is the name given to rugby union sevens

Rugby sevens

Rugby sevens, also known as seven-a-side or VIIs, is a variant of rugby union in which teams are made up of seven players, instead of the usual 15, with shorter matches. Rugby sevens is administered by the International Rugby Board , the body responsible for rugby union worldwide...

 tournaments that are held annually in the Scottish Borders

Scottish Borders

The Scottish Borders is one of 32 local government council areas of Scotland. It is bordered by Dumfries and Galloway in the west, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian in the north west, City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian to the north; and the non-metropolitan counties of Northumberland...

. It is the oldest Sevens Circuit in the world, with most sevens dating from the 19th century.

Kings of the Sevens

The ten most prestigious of these tournaments make up a league competition known as the Kings of the Sevens. Teams competing gain points depending on how far they progress in each tournament; the winner gains ten points, the runner up gets seven points, and semi-finalists receive five points. Teams that are eliminated at the quarter final stage gain three points.

The current champions are Melrose RFC.

Schedule

Traditional Sevens schedule was changed by the Scottish Rugby Union

Scottish Rugby Union

The Scottish Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Scotland. It is the second oldest Rugby Union, having been founded in 1873, as the Scottish Football Union.-History:...

 in order to allow more time for the regular rugby season. Controversially, due to the influence of former national coach Jim Telfer

Jim Telfer

James "Jim" Telfer is a Scottish rugby union coach and a former rugby player. A former headmaster at Hawick High School and chemistry teacher, he has won fame as a Scottish forwards coach who gave punishing training sessions to his players...

, Melrose RFC did not have to change its date. As of 2011, Sevens will take place on consecutive weekends in April

April

April is the fourth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars, and one of four months with a length of 30 days. April was originally the second month of the Roman calendar, before January and February were added by King Numa Pompilius about 700 BC...

 and May

May

May is the fifth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and one of seven months with the length of 31 days.May is a month of autumn in the Southern Hemisphere and spring in the Northern Hemisphere...

.