The All Pro Polo League (APPL) landed in Chantilly, France, on Tuesday, May 15, to host its first tournament of the French season. Four 15-goal teams, uniquely composed of professional French players, took to the field to play with APPL rules. Both matches were dynamic and entertaining to watch. “I loved it,” shared Edouard Pan, winner of the second challenge of the day. “It was a good open match. We sped up when we needed to in order to win. As for the concept, there are some interesting points. The players and the public still need to get used to the new rules, but the APPL is going in the right direction.”

Pan’s teammate Robert Strom, stated: “Beyond the APPL itself, I appreciate the initiative they took to assemble medium-goal matches between only French players. No one imagined that it was possible to put together four 15-goal teams. Playing these matches APPL style is an excellent idea. The rules are perfect because they allowed for
hard play. With normal rules, we would have most likely played in a way that was less intense. We were able to play a version of polo that was close to the way it’s played in Argentina. It was obvious that we had not yet developed all the mechanics. There was some initial uncertainty, especially with the idea of hitting the ball without tapping!”

Chantilly Polo Club will host another APPL tournament on May 29. The following teams are set to compete:

Team 1: Pierre-Henri Ngoumou (6), Adrien Le Gallo (3), Julien Reynes (3), Clément Toussaint (2)
Team 2: Brieuc Rigaux (6), Mathieu Delfosse (4), Clément Gosset (3), Stan Clavel (2)
Team 3: Clément Delfosse (5), Edouard Pan (4), Jérôme Anier (3), Gaëtan Gosset (3)
Team 4: Patrick Paillol (5), Robert Strom (5), Louis Jarrige (3), Jules Legoubin (2)

Substitute: Benoit Perrier (2)

For more information on the All Pro Polo League, be sure to follow us on social media @allpropolo.