Punter Michael Dickson has a shot of becoming the second Australian to play in a Super Bowl win after helping Seattle reach the NFL showcase game.
Dickson played a key role in the Seahawks’ 31-27 win against the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC championship fixture on Sunday night (Monday AEDT).
But fellow Australian punter Jeremy Crawshaw’s Super Bowl hopes are over after his Denver Broncos were pipped 10-7 by the New England Patriots in the AFC championship game.
Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today Arrow
Dickson will feature in the Super Bowl at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, on February 8 (February 9 AEDT).
The Sydney-born 30-year-old hopes to join Jordan Mailata as Australians to play in a Super Bowl triumph.
Mailata won a coveted Super Bowl ring with the Philadelphia Eagles last season.
Another Australian, Jesse Williams, has a ring thanks to being on Seattle’s roster in their 2014 triumph, but he didn’t play during the season because of a knee injury.
Australian punters Ben Graham (Arizona, 2009), Mitch Wishnowsky (San Francisco, 2020) and Arryn Siposs (Philadephia, 2023) have all played in Super Bowl losses.
The Seahawks’ latest win came with a Dickson punt vital in the tense victory.
With hosts Seattle leading 17-13 in the third quarter at Lumen Field, the Australian launched a 55-yard punt that proved too hot for Los Angeles’ Xavier Smith to handle: perched under the bomb, the Ram stumbled, fell and couldn’t hold the ball.
From the special teams turnover, the Seahawks scored a touchdown on the next play to create a 10-point buffer.
They were never headed thereafter, with Dickson punting five times in the game for a total of 226 yards.
In the earlier AFC championship game between the Patriots and Broncos at Denver’s Empower Field at Mile High in Colorado, scores were locked 7-7 at halftime in cold but clear conditions.
A snow storm and accompanying strong winds then hit, hampering both sides.
The Pats’ Venezuelan-born kicker Andres Borregales nailed a 23-year field goal with just over five minutes remaining in the third quarter for the only score of the second half.
The Broncos’ loss ends a standout season for NFL rookie Crawshaw, a 24-year-old born in Penrith who initially played rugby league and Australian Rules football.
Crawshaw was signed by Denver with a sixth-round pick at last year’s NFL draft and became a Broncos mainstay, earning a berth in the All Rookie Team picked by the Pro Football Writers of America body.
Crawshaw continued his strong form in the championship game, with six punts for 309 yards highlighted by a longest kick of 60 yards.
But Denver, without injured star quarterback Bo Nix, were collectively unable to quell New England quarterback Drake Maye, who ran for 68 yards, threw for 86 yards in the sloppy, snowy conditions, and scored the Patriots’ only touchdown.
The Pats became just the third team in the Super Bowl era to win a conference championship game with 10 points or less.
“I’m just proud of this team,” Maye said.
“Don’t have many words, just thankful for this team; love each and every one of them. It took everybody.”
‘Disgusting’ dessert waiting for beaten Aus Open champ
3 min read
Controversy erupts as world No.1 forced to remove device
2 min read
