 Quarterback Eli Manning scores the Giants' touchdown New York made the best of a muddy pitch at Wembley to record a 13-10 win over Miami in the first competitive NFL game outside the Americas.  Miami Dolphins' late touchdown was not enough to trouble the Giants |
Miami were beset by injuries, with veteran quarterback Trent Green (concussion), top running back Ronnie Brown (knee) and star linebacker Zach Thomas (neck) all out. In the first half, they could only pose a threat on their opening drive, when they relied heavily on the running of Brown's replacement Jesse Chatman. That threat was snubbed out, though, and Feely - on his third sporting visit to the UK as he played youth football against the likes of Manchester United and Celtic - saw his 48-yard field goal attempt tipped wide right. Tynes - who lived in Greenock before moving to Florida at the age of 10 - made no mistake when presented with a 20-yard chance with just under four minutes left in the opening quarter. The Giants could have been further ahead, though, had Manning found his touch with two simple passes into the end zone beforehand. Overall, Manning endured miserable passing figures as he completed just eight of 22 attempts for 59 yards.
GMT on BBC TWO and BBC website (UK users only) New York made the best of a muddy pitch at Wembley to record a 13-10 win over Miami in the first competitive NFL game outside the Americas. Scottish-born kicker Lawrence Tynes booted seven points and Brandon Jacobs ran for 131 yards as the Giants sealed their sixth successive triumph. A crowd of 81,176 saw New York quarterback Eli Manning sprint from 10 yards for the Giants' only touchdown. Receiver Ted Ginn Jr scored Miami's late reply but it was not enough.
The Dolphins, already off to the worst start in their 42-year history, suffered their eighth straight defeat as Ginn's touchdown came with less than two minutes remaining. And once Jay Feely's onside kick went out of bounds, the Giants ran out the clock. A mix of travelling Miami fans, American expats, hardcore fans from all over Europe and some casual supporters booed the tactic - a normal occurrence at the end of games - heartily.  | 606: DEBATE |
Despite incessant rain, the venue stayed almost full until the end of the third quarter, when Feely kicked a 29-yard field goal. That missed opportunity for a touchdown effectively ended the Dolphins' hopes of leaving St Louis the only winless team in the league. But there was time for one last drive, first-round draft pick Ginn scoring his first career touchdown to reward those who stayed on. Slick play was at a premium but veteran Giants defender Michael Strahan said the trip outside America had been an all-round success. "We won the game, everybody had a good time here in London and hopefully we'll come back," he said. "The atmosphere was phenomenal, better than I anticipated. It was like being at home." Miami Dolphins' late touchdown was not enough to trouble the Giants |
Miami were beset by injuries, with veteran quarterback Trent Green (concussion), top running back Ronnie Brown (knee) and star linebacker Zach Thomas (neck) all out. In the first half, they could only pose a threat on their opening drive, when they relied heavily on the running of Brown's replacement Jesse Chatman. That threat was snubbed out, though, and Feely - on his third sporting visit to the UK as he played youth football against the likes of Manchester United and Celtic - saw his 48-yard field goal attempt tipped wide right. Tynes - who lived in Greenock before moving to Florida at the age of 10 - made no mistake when presented with a 20-yard chance with just under four minutes left in the opening quarter. The Giants could have been further ahead, though, had Manning found his touch with two simple passes into the end zone beforehand. Overall, Manning endured miserable passing figures as he completed just eight of 22 attempts for 59 yards. New York came into the game with the fourth-ranked running game in the league but looked to pass early despite the weather, which caused an error-prone show. They only began to establish the run through Jacobs and bruising full-back Reuben Droughns late in the first half. | Our team was very proud to be here in London. The people have been wonderful to us. The stadium is beautiful |
They appeared lucky when a low pass to Plaxico Burress on third down was ruled complete after a referral to the television umpire. Manning - younger brother of Colts Super Bowl winner Peyton - took full advantage with the very next play, faking a hand-off before sprinting into the left corner himself. The wet conditions got the better of inexperienced Miami quarterback Cleo Lemon, starting just his third game after Green's season-ending concussion. He fumbled an attempted forward pass with 26 seconds remaining in the half, and defensive end Michael Strahan recovered to set up a second Tynes field goal, from 31 yards to make the score 13-0. The errors continued with dropped catches and fumbles on both sides in the second half before Miami's Matt Roth forced a Manning fumble to set up Feely's field goal. Tynes missed a chance to ice the contest when his 39-yard attempt faded left with just under 12 minutes remaining. And Lemon took advantage of the Giants' decision to set their defence back to gain a score that could have been more than a consolation had the kick-off ended up in Miami hands.
Miami coach Cam Cameron:
"I can't imagine a game being put together better than this. The hospitality was like none I've ever seen. "As it relates to the game, I told our guys you can't make that many mistakes, especially in the scoring zone. We weren't able to overcome those mistakes." Giants coach Tom Coughlin:
"Our team was very proud to be here in London. The people have been wonderful to us. The stadium is beautiful. "It was a difficult game for us. We thought we were in pretty good shape defensively for a long time. "But nevertheless, on the last drive [for them] to score in those situations was a shocker to me." |
NFL reaction: Giants 13-10 Dolphins 
