Caught on Camera: Jakarta Komodos’ Run to Nusantara 7s Final

The Jakarta Komodos Rugby Club Senior Team lost the RugbyPass.com Nusantara Sevens (7s) Cup Final to the Jakarta Bantengs A side on a beautiful day at the Nusantara Polo Club on the weekend of February 27-28.

Action on and off the pitch was photographed by club supporter Tracey Oliver, who took the photo above. Links to photos of both the seniors, and the victorious women’s team can be downloaded using the links at the bottom of the page.

The day began against the Bantengs B, a physical contest up front but a simpler one out wide, with winger Matthew Rizzoli running in three tries as the Komodos cruised to an easy win. Dominic Wong added two on his way to a Man of the Tournament performance for the team. Taylor Oliver, in his first ever match for the Komodos, crashed down onto his shoulder and was out for the day.

Next came another simple yet physical victory against the Bandung Rams, with Conrad Warren putting some fine touches in at fly-half for a strong day, as well as Sebastian Sharp at half-back. Zac Smith also shined, along with forwards Daniel Nugroho and Stevie Haurissa.

Next came the toughest test of the pool stages: Jakarta Inter-Cultural School. JIS beat the Komodos in a 10s pre-season match-up, exploiting their skill and fitness to great effect. But, the Komodos had learned their lesson, and with a far tougher defence, shutting down JIS’s quick ball. The Komodos won, and faced Universitas Negeri Jakarta in the Cup Semi-final. Unfortunately, in the melee, stalwart forward Kyle Larson suffered a season-ending knee injury.

UNJ improves every year, and on the sevens pitch their drills showed, but once again an impressive showing of defence from the backline and swift movement shut the opposition down.

Then, it was the final against Bantengs A. The Komodos could have been in a position to dominate the match but injuries, fatigue and side-line lubrication began to take their toll. They lost to a quick ball out wide. Unable to counter it, the Komodos finished second, just two weeks after beating the Bantengs in the Jakarta XVs Series.

A big congratulations goes out to Daniel Nugroho, pictured in action above, who played and was a major organizer of the tournament, for a beautiful day of rugby.

Tracey’s photographs of the Jakarta Komodos Rugby Club Senior Team can be VIEWED or DOWNLOADED HERE

Tracey’s photographs of the Jakarta Komodos Rugby Club Women’s Team, as well as the junior teams can be VIEWED or DOWNLOADED HERE