Ya, subs defeat the purpose of "you lose, you're out." It's a "team" event, but you are required to play your own matches.
Glitch, I can't declare Essence as a winner unless there is evidence that he made an attempt to play his match. I'm sure he did, but if I made an exception for him, I'd have to make an exception for everyone. Only four people BCC'd me in the messages they sent, and they all played their matches.
If there's any convincing evidence and/or multiple witnesses (not just people from his team) that he made an effort to play, I may be able to grant him a victory. If there is any evidence showing that Xinef made an attempt as well, I'll have to conclude that they just couldn't agree on a time to play. Also, if Xinef says that he wasn't able to play for some reason, I'll give Essence the win.