Course
Sandwich

Why is The Sandwich a Rule

The sandwich is where two players from the same team simultaneously ride off a player on the opposing team. The reason this is called a foul is to protect the safety of both horses and players, there are a number of ways in which a horse could be off balanced or injured by the two players on either side.  


How is the Rule of The Sandwich Applied

The sandwich rule applies equally to both offensive and defensive players. The determining factor in whether a foul is called is whether two players on the same team are riding off one player simultaneously.

Procedure of The Sandwich Rule

The penalty for breaking the sandwich rule is a penalty hit to the player and team that was fouled. The placement of the ball, for the penalty hit, is determined by the severity and the amount of potential danger caused by the two infringing players. There’s also the possibility of a yellow card being awarded to both players for dangerous riding, if the sandwich is deemed grievous enough.

The Sandwich at Different Levels of Polo

There is little difference in the interpretation of the sandwich rule at low and high-goal levels. The only difference is that at high-goal, two players who simultaneously come into contact but in a very brief and without considerable contact, will be less likely to be whistled for a foul, when compared with low-goal.

The most common error that Fergus noted for a sandwich violation being called, is where a player is focused on making a ride off with their opponent and one of their teammates comes in to make the same ride off, as they may not see their teammate there or be unaware of them approaching. The best way to mitigate this, according to Fergus, is to ensure that you and your teammates communicate effectively, so that each player knows where each other are.


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