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Although many may have forgotten the name of Australian, Craig Senger, to a growing group of Jakarta rugby union players that make up the predominantly Indonesian Jakarta Banteng Rugby Club, the name will always be remembered.
Craig was an avid rugby player and fan who after coming to work in Jakarta for Austrade, opted to play with Jakarta Banteng whose members are mainly Indonesian and have very little experience of the game. Craig Senger played with the Banteng for almost two seasons before tragically losing his life on the morning of the 17th of July 2009, in a suicide bomb attack inside the J. W. Marriott hotel restaurant where he was attending a breakfast meeting….
One year to the day of this tragic event, Jakarta Banteng Rugby Club held an internal Rugby Sevens tournament in which four teams made up of the club’s increasing number of senior and junior players vied for the first ever Craig Senger Cup to honour their departed brother. The event was also showcased as a Jakarta exposč for the fast-paced version of Rugby Union, which will be an Olympic event in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. The tournament was held at Lapangan ABC on Saturday and whilst the competition was thrilling and hard-fought, for the club players and supporters along with the many soccer players who sat wide-eyed and watched their first ever games of rugby, the event was an example of a thoroughly enjoyable day; a day of rugby camaraderie.
“Craig wasn’t just a player” said Bobby Orlando, the recognized father-figure of the club who is nick-named ‘Babeh’ by his clubmates. “Craig was an all-round good man who loved the spirit of the game, the club, his friends and especially the people of Indonesia. We remember our brother with love today by playing the game that we loved to play together.”
Seniors and juniors of the club were divided to form four mini-teams that allowed for pool games as well as two finals to be played. An exhibition game by the club’s girls & women’s players was held in between the two finals.
“Rugby is definitely growing in Indonesia and you can see that by the number of players that now belong to the club” says Denny, the club Chairman. “When we first started, there were times that only five or six players turned up to training but now we get sessions where up to 50 people turn up, both male and female” he continues.
Read more: http://indonesianrugby.com./