Manning denies Brady’s revenge

With the New England Patriots looking to exact some revenge on the Giants for ruining a perfect season in 2008, Eli Manning and his New York teammates mounted a fourth quarter comeback to snatch another Lombardi Trophy from the hands of Tom Brady and Bill Belicheck.

The Giants trailed the Patriots 17-15 with less than four minutes to play in the fourth quarter, but marched 88 yards down the field to score the game winning touch down. It was Manning's fifth career game-winning drive in the post-season, supplanting himself among the game's elite quarterbacks.

With the late game lead, the Patriots had a chance to ice the Giants, but missed a golden opportunity. With four minutes left to play in the fourth quarter, with Brady and his offense driving steadily down the field, Wes Welker dropped a sure first-down conversion. It was a catch that the sure-handed Welker almost always makes, but the miss led to an eventual Patriots punt, giving the Giants their shot at the title.

After taking over on their own 12 yard line, Manning hit Mario Manningham for a 38-yard catch, which was amazingly brought in along the sidelines in double coverage. It wasn't quite the David Tyree helmet catch in Super Bowl XLII, but it will surely go down as one of the biggest catches in recent Super Bowl memory.

However, at the end of the drive it was the Giants that gave the Patriots a glimmer of hope. Ahmad Bradshaw ran the ball in for a touchdown, but milking the clock and kicking a field goal would have still given the Giants the lead, while forcing Brady to work with only 20 seconds. Instead, Bradshaw scored, giving Brady 57 seconds to win the game and gain Football immortality.

Fortunately for the Giants, Brady, one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history, couldn't do it that night. The New York defence held, thanks in part to two big dropped passes by Patriot receivers, and stopped a last second Hail Mary pass to seal the victory.

Manning took Super Bowl MVP honours after completing 30 of 40 passes for 296 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions.

The victory gives Eli two Super Bowl rings, one more than his brother Peyton, and silenced the critics who laughed when he suggested he was on Brady's level at the beginning of the season.

The low-scoring game was highlighted by two strong defences, neither of which was overly effective during the regular season, but both of which were tough during the playoffs. The Giants sacked Brady twice and forced two interceptions.

The Patriots forced three sacks and two fumbles, but were unable to recover either, which proved fortuitous for the Giants as it allowed them to score an additional three points they otherwise wouldn't have. It was another missed opportunity for the Patriots, who have failed to win a Super Bowl since 2005 despite being perennial favourites.

The biggest ‘what if' question for Patriots fans concerns star Tight End Rob Gronkowski's ankle. Gronkowski was a non-factor for the Patriots after suffering a high ankle sprain in the AFC championship, and allowed the Giants to focus on Welker and Aaron Hernandez, both of whom were held to less than 70 yards.

Ultimately, the Giants capitalized on their opportunities and came up with the big plays when they were needed. They were strong in all facets of the game, which is why the fourth Super Bowl parade in Giants franchise history will be held in the streets of New York.