Sunday, October 23, 2011

Bears hold off Bucks as Jet Lag appears to catch up…

From NFL @ Wembley 2011
76,981 NFL fans, of every team in the league, almost filled Wembley Stadium, London, UK and witnessed the Tampa Bay Buccaneers almost pull off an unlikely come back – keeping the game alive until the closing 30 seconds when a desperate attempt to keep a potentially game winning drive down the pitch going was intercepted to bring to an end a game that had at one point looked like it might be an easy win on their rather longer than usual travels for the Chicago Bears.
The final score of 24-18 was a fair reflection of a game that had had a faltering start – one early down taking a dozen plays before being punted up the pitch. Maybe the effects of jet lag needed to be shaken off – but once out of the first quarter the Bears took control with three answered touch downs – with the Bucks only managing safety and field goal in response.. Then in the fourth quarter the Bucks came to life – or did the Bears defence succumb to the effects of jet lag? Twice In quick succession the bucks crossed into the end zone, bring themselves within a field goal of taking the game into over time at 21-18 – then the Bears managed to get within field goal range themselves and pull six points ahead – making the Bucks strive for a touch down in the final minutes of the game, which proved just beyond them.

This was the fifth time the razzle dazzle of the NFL had been brought across the Atlantic to London, and despite the tight economy Wembley was almost sold out – there has been talk of more than one London game in future seasons and even of a Super Bowl. If the NFL can persuade teams of the calibre of  the Bucks and Bears to take part there will be a healthy audience – and the Super Bowl has the advantage that neither side has to give up a home game to take part as it’s highly unusual for one of the Super Bowl teams to happen also to be that year’s host franchise for the season closer.

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