Arizona v Pittsburgh

SBowl Arizona-Pittsburgh IncOT 02/02 - Head to Head
Odds updated at 07:04:42
Includes Overtime 10:20 Mon 02 Feb 2009
Sportsbet No. Selection (default) Price Amount Total
33001 Arizona 3.25 $
33002 Pittsburgh 1.35 $


SBowl Arizona-Pittsburgh IncOT 02/02 - Line
Odds updated at 07:04:42
Includes Overtime 10:20 Mon 02 Feb 2009
Sportsbet No. Selection (default) Price Amount Total
33003 Arizona +6.5 2.00 $
33004 Pittsburgh -6.5 1.80 $


SBowl Arizona-Pittsburgh IncOT 02/02 - Margin
Odds updated at 07:04:42
Includes Overtime 10:20 Mon 02 Feb 2009
Sportsbet No. Selection (default) Price Amount Total
33007 Arizona 1-6 Pts 5.75 $
33008 Arizona 7-12 Pts 9.00 $
33009 Arizona 13-18 Pts 15.00 $
33010 Arizona 19-24 Pts 34.00 $
33011 Arizona 25-30 Pts 67.00 $
33012 Arizona 31-36 Pts 101.00 $
33013 Arizona 37+ Pts 126.00 $
33014 Pittsburgh 1-6 Pts 4.75 $
33015 Pittsburgh 7-12 Pts 4.50 $
33016 Pittsburgh 13-18 Pts 6.00 $
33017 Pittsburgh 19-24 Pts 8.00 $
33018 Pittsburgh 25-30 Pts 11.00 $
33019 Pittsburgh 31-36 Pts 17.00 $
33020 Pittsburgh 37+ Pts 31.00 $


SBowl Arizona-Pittsburgh IncOT 02/02 - 1st Score Type
Odds updated at 07:04:32
Includes Overtime 10:20 Mon 02 Feb 2009
Sportsbet No. Selection (default) Price Amount Total
33021 Arizona Touchdown 3.65 $
33022 Arizona Field Goal 4.75 $
33023 Arizona Safety 101.00 $
33024 Pittsburgh Touchdown 2.40 $
33025 Pittsburgh Field Goal 4.75 $
33026 Pittsburgh Safety 101.00 $

^ Top
SBowl Arizona-Pittsburgh IncOT 02/02 - Total Score Over/Under
Odds updated at 07:04:43
Includes Overtime 10:20 Mon 02 Feb 2009
Sportsbet No. Selection (default) Price Amount Total
33064 Over 46.5 Points 1.95 $
33065 Under 46.5 Points 1.80 $


SBowl Arizona-Pittsburgh IncOT 02/02 - 1st Touchdown Scorer
Odds updated at 07:04:05
Includes Overtime 10:20 Mon 02 Feb 2009
Sportsbet No. Selection (default) Price Amount Total
33027 ARRINGTON JJ (ARI) 34.00 $
33028 BOLDIN Anquan (ARI) 12.00 $
33029 BREASTON Steve (ARI) 17.00 $
33030 FITZGERALD Larry (ARI) 6.50 $
33031 HIGHTOWER Tim (ARI) 13.00 $
33032 JAMES Edgerrin (ARI) 10.00 $
33033 HOLMES Santonio (PIT) 11.00 $
33034 MILLER Heath (PIT) 15.00 $
33035 MOORE Mewelde (PIT) 17.00 $
33036 PARKER Willie (PIT) 6.00 $
33037 WARD Hines (PIT) 10.00 $
33038 WASHINGTON Nate (PIT) 17.00 $
33039 Any Other Touchdown Scorer 3.50 $
33040 No Touchdown Scorer 67.00 $


SBowl Arizona-Pittsburgh IncOT 02/02 - Line/Total Match Score
Odds updated at 07:04:42
Includes Overtime 10:20 Mon 02 Feb 2009
Sportsbet No. Selection (default) Price Amount Total
33066 Arizona (+6.5)/Over 46.5 3.90 $
33067 Arizona (+6.5)/Under 46.5 3.60 $
33068 Pittsburgh (-6.5)/Over 46.5 3.55 $
33069 Pittsburgh (-6.5)/Under 46.5 3.25 $

January 26, 2009

ARIZONA Cardinals punter Ben Graham, the former AFL star, has overcome a groin injury and will become the first Australian to play in a Super Bowl.

Head coach of the Cardinals, Ken Whisenhunt, has declared Graham fit and ready to play in Monday morning's (EDT) NFL season decider against Pittsburgh Steelers.

Since last week's victory over Philadelphia Eagles, the 35-year-old former Geelong captain has undergone intensive treatment on his injured left groin.

"He's fine,'' Whisenhunt said.

Graham has trained with the team, but only in limited periods.

"It was good this week for him to get back,'' Whisenhunt said. "I expect him to punt in practice and for there not to be any issues.''

Graham said after the Cardinals defeated the Eagles 32-25 to book the Super Bowl berth that the injury would not keep him out of the grandest day on the American sports calendar.

He said he'd had similar injuries with Geelong and knew how to treat it.

The Eagles game was a showdown between Graham and Sav Rocca, another AFL star turned American football punter.

The Super Bowl will be played in Tampa Bay, Florida.


Ben Graham factfile
DOB: November 2, 1973

AFL career
Played 219 games and kicked 145 goals for Geelong from 1993-2004, captained the club from 2000-02, won the best and fairest award in 1999, was the (equal) leading goal scorer in 2001, and played in the Cats' 1995 grand final loss to Carlton.

NFL career Played 51 games for the New York Jets from 2005-08, and reached the playoffs in 2006. Had 249 punts for the Jets at an average of 43.5 yards, until he was waived in September, 2008. Signed by the New Orleans Saints in October and played one game before he was waived a week later. Joined the Arizona Cardinals as a free agent in December and has punted four games. If he overcomes a groin injury, he will become the first Australian to play in Super Bowl.

January 28, 2009

SUPER Bowl XLII sees two quarter-backs that have done this all before going head-to-head in the big dance.

For Arizona's Kurt Warner the game represents another chance to take a down-trodden franchise from zeroes to heroes just as he did with St Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXIV.

Pittsburgh's "Big Ben" Roethlisberger tasted success more recently, however many would suggest that Steelers' win in Super Bowl XL was less because of his performance and more in spite of it.

For better or worse, both custodians possess the big game experience that is vital to their teams' chances of lifting the Vince Lombardi trophy.

There are few more storied tales in the NFL than that of Warner.

Undrafted out of the University of Northern Iowa, Warner was picked up as a free agent by Green Bay in 1994 before being released by Packers before the regular season got underway.

Unwanted by NFL teams, Warner found a home in the Arena Football League for three seasons before spending a year with Amsterdam Admirals in NFL Europe.

What followed was the stuff sporting dreams are made of.

Signed by St Louis as back up to quarter-back Trent Green, Warner soon found himself starting thanks to a pre-season injury to Green.

That year he would lead a St Louis franchise that had lost more games than any other NFL outfit during the 90s to a Super Bowl triumph, collecting the league MVP and Super Bowl MVP along the way.

Two years later Warner would win his second MVP though Rams fell agonisingly short of another championship with a last second loss to New England.

After falling out of favour with Rams coach Mike Martz, Warner was released by St Louis in 2004.

After an unsuccessful stint with New York's Giants Warner landed in Arizona and experienced another disappointing season in 2005, yo-yoing in and out of the starting rotation.

Following a battle for starting honours with 2006 rookie Matt Leinart, Cardinals again put their faith in Warner for the duration of their 2008 campaign, giving the 37-yr-old another shot at a miracle.

Warner finished the regular season with 30 touchdown passes and a quarter-back rating of 96.9 - the third best in the league

Along the way hed led Arizona to their first division title in 33 years and into their first ever Super Bowl.

Roethlisberger's start in the NFL was more of the silver spoon variety.

Starting 2004 as the third string quarter-back for Pittsburgh, injuries to those above him saw Roethlisberger elevated in the third game of the season.

He led Steelers to victories in his first 14 starts, his first loss coming in the conference championship that year against New England.

Following an almost perfect rookie season, the only improvement Roethlisberger could possibly make in 2005 would be to lead his Steelers to a Super Bowl championship – which is exactly what he did.

While Big Ben led Pittsburgh through an improbable play-off run to the Super Bowl and records will show him as a championship-winning quarter-back that year, the tale of the tape tells a very different story.

In the Super Bowl victory over Seattle, Roethlisberger completed only nine of 21 passes for a total of 123 yards, throwing two interceptions and no touchdown, finishing with a rating of 22.6.

Essentially Roethlisberger did everything possible to lose Pittsburgh a Super Bowl, and now he's chasing a happier memory to replace that with.

After being seriously injured in a motorcycle accident prior to the commencement of the 2006 season, what followed was a sub-par year that combined the rigours of injury with the dreaded curse of a championship hangover.

A year of redemption in 2007 saw Steelers return to the top of the AFC North.

In 2008 Roethlisberger re-emerged as the ultimate leader and fronting a team that was heavily favoured from the outset - so it seems few things are able to surprise the Steelers' faithful on route to another Super Bowl.

While Roethlisberger's journey is still in its infancy, Warner will undoubtedly say goodbye to the NFL – win or lose – following the big game at Tampa's Raymond James Stadium.

What will take place in the preceding 60 minutes of football will be an illustration of the leadership qualities of two men who have experienced the highs and lows of an NFL professional - and want another Super Bowl ring.

Arizona v Pittsburgh

Head to Head
Odds updated at 11:35:20
Includes Overtime Bet by phone 133 390
Sportsbet No. Selection (default) Price Amount Total
33001 Arizona 2.95
33002 Pittsburgh 1.40

Arizona v Pittsburgh

Head to Head
Odds updated at 11:56:17
Includes Overtime Bet by phone 133 390
Sportsbet No. Selection (default) Price Amount Total
33001 Arizona 4.65
33002 Pittsburgh 1.18

February 02, 2009

A LAST-minute rally gave Pittsburgh Steelers an unprecedented sixth Super Bowl crown, but not before they squandered a 13-point lead over Arizona and nearly suffered a shocking upset.

Santonio Holmes caught a seven-yard touchdown pass with 35 seconds remaining to give the Steelers a 27-23 victory and extend the Cardinals' 61-season title drought, the second-longest active futility streak in American sport.

Holmes's dramatic catch, tapping down his toes in the back right corner of the end zone as he hauled in a Ben Roethlisberger pass, set Pittsburgh above all others in Super Bowl history and brought him Most Valuable Player honours.

"I stepped in the huddle and told them this is where we stand on the podium and become world champions," Holmes said. "I dared the team. I told Ben I want to be the guy to win the game, just give me the ball and I will do it for you."

Pittsburgh won previous Super Bowl titles in 1975, 1976, 1979, 1980 and 2006 and moved the Steelers past five-time champions San Francisco and Dallas.

Holmes made nine catches for 131 yards and hauled in four on the eight-play, 75-yard drive for the game-winning touchdown, which withstood a video review to see if Aaron Francisco might have knocked him out of bounds before the catch.

"I knew it was a touchdown 100 per cent. My feet never left the ground," said Holmes. "I stood up on my toes and extended my hands. Everything just flowed right together."

The Cardinals, who won their only National Football League crown in 1947, came up short despite Larry Fitzgerald catching two touchdown passes from Kurt Warner in the fourth quarter to put Arizona ahead 23-20 with 2:37 remaining.

"Being so close after that touchdown and having it snatched away, it hurts," Fitzgerald said. "It was like getting a chair pulled out from under you. I just feel empty right now."

Pittsburgh linebacker James Harrison returned an interception 100 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the second quarter to give the Steelers a 17-7 half-time lead on what was the longest play in Super Bowl history.

"I was tired as a dog," Harrison said. "It was a quarter-tank, but I ended up making it. It was about will and determination."

Momentum turned on the play, which came with Arizona on the Steelers' 2-yard line with 18 seconds to go in the first half. Harrison, the NFL Defensive Player of the Year, evaded three tackle attempts to reach the end zone.

"I couldn't see him," Warner said of the pivotal pick-off. "He jumped out there and made a great play."

After Jeff Reed's 21-yard field goal boosted Pittsburgh's lead, Arizona attempted the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history by scoring the next 16 points, with Fitzgerald baffling the NFL's top-ranked defence.

Fitzgerald leaped over defender Ike Taylor for a one-yard touchdown grab with 7:33 remaining to pull the Cardinals within 20-14.

"We've shown some character over the last month to stay in there and fight," Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt said. "I was very proud of our team for that."

Arizona trimmed the deficit on a two-point safety when Pittsburgh centre Justin Hartwig was whistled for a holding penalty in the end zone.

Moments later, Fitzgerald cut to his left, pulled in a pass from Warner at midfield and outraced the Steeler defence to the end zone for a 64-yard touchdown pass that gave Arizona a 23-20 edge with 2:37 remaining.

"It was a shot to the heart," Steeler defender Troy Polamalu said.

But that only set the stage for Holmes's game-deciding heroics.

"I was thinking they were going to score. I just wanted them to score quickly," Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said. "Steeler football is 60 minutes."

Tomlin, the youngest coach in Super Bowl history at age 36, became only the second black coach to win the title game, following Tony Dungy of Indianapolis in 2007.

"I'm not concerned about personal milestones," Tomlin said. "I'm concerned about adding to the Steelers legacy."

Warner, honoured for humanitarian work as NFL Man of the Year before the game, was not done trying to rescue the Cardinals, driving them to the Steelers' 44-yard line with 15 seconds remaining.

But LaMarr Woodley knocked the ball from Warner's grasp and Pittsburgh's Brett Keisel fell on the fumble to give the Steelers the victory.

It was the first Super Bowl title for Steelers punter Mitch Berger of Canada and Tongan offensive left guard Chris Kemoeatu.

"It's always great to come in and represent, not only for Steeler nation but for our families," Kemoeatu said. "Some of us come from a long ways away."