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@MAT
[FONT=Arial]Firstly….thank you Munich! [/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]You guys (esp. Eingang) put on one well organized tourney. The hospitality from all was great (esp. thanks to Catherine and Christophe for putting Cosmic ( . ) ( . ) up) and despite first impressions, the court ended up being super fun to play on - Friday throw in’s were awesome! [/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]It was also awesome to meet up with some familiar Euro faces, as well as play against and alongside new faces from some of the best teams in European polo and the U.S what with mighty Mustard Tigers being present.[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]And of course…I had a blast going out with Em, BRik, Gabes, Daaaavvvveeee, Manc Andy, Lebowski, Playboy (Yorgo), Sarah, B and Cosmic Tommo. [/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]We all gave each other the best support, on and off the courts, as well as provided some of the best side line banter known to Polo. Manc Andy was esp. on fire, calling out lookie like players such as ‘ronnie corbit, ‘my name is earl’ and ‘featureless andy’. You prob had to be there to find it funny, but trust me, it was a crack![/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]And despite all only playing 3 competitive games on the day, we def instigated the most throw in’s and played with the biggest smiles and best attitudes. So if anything, we showed Europe we all just simply love polo and that’s all that really matters![/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]Cheers guys![/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]Bring on more International Polo trips – I want a Polo Wagon![/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]Well, on the day we thought so, but having spent time thinking about what happened (or where things went wrong), I feel our game isn’t as bad as we are starting to feel.[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]Yes, no London team progressed into the knock out stages, which was frustrating, as we know we can play better polo. But when you consider most Euro teams have been playing together for years and then actually looked at the games themselves, it’s not as black and white as the final rankings may indicate. [/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]I didn’t watch every London game, but what I do know is Rotten Apples finished amongst the top 4 2nd ranked teams and if it wasn’t for a weaker goal difference would have gone through to the knock out stages. After their 3rd game they looked strong and I reckon could have gone on further.[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]With Comsic Breasts, we got a respectable 3-3 draw against [/FONT][FONT=Arial]Maty,Schindel und Söhne in our first game, [/FONT][FONT=Arial]which was a typical tourney starting one - tight and full of nervous adrenaline. Then we suffered a 3-2 loss in our second game with [/FONT][FONT=Arial]Poloholics Torros - who finished runners up, so one of the best teams in Europe. However, if it wasn’t for my brake cable snapping just after the game started, which instantly changed my style to a defensive one, the result could have been different. Then our final game was with DT All Stars who had nothing to lose. The game felt like a true London one, fast end to end stuff, with plenty of attacking play, but on the day, DT All Stars were the better team and smashed us 5-1. But atleast I took Lebowski out proper style – sorry mate![/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]Overall, it looks like London teams do play faster, more aggressive polo and chase the games (balls) more. Where as Euro teams tend to hold possession better and play the ball around the court to create openings for shots[/FONT][FONT=Arial].[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]I feel we should def keep elements of our game though. It’s great we are fast and powerful, but we can make improvements to our playing style, inorder to increase the passing rate and close the opportunities we allow for counter attacking.[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]I think the more team games we get in before the Euros, the better prepped we will be to make an impact. [/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]London[/FONT][FONT=Arial] is no push over, but perhaps our passion for the game sometimes takes over.[/FONT]