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The Saints were the "home" team and the London crowd responded by giving them loud support and waving black New Orleans pennants.
After last year's muddy mess, there were fears that London's notorious wet weather could ruin things again. There was a steady rain Sunday morning and early afternoon, but the showers ended by game time. The field was slippery and torn up in places, but not enough to stop these two high-powered offenses.
"I thought it was what the fans here wanted to see," Chargers defensive end Luis Castillo said. "I thought they wanted a high-scoring game. I thought they wanted to see the ball being thrown. I thought they wanted to see amazing athletes making amazing plays, and that's what they got."
After the teams traded field goals in the first quarter, they scored 34 points in the second quarter. Brees threw TD passes to Devery Henderson (12 yards) and Lance Moore (30 yards), while Rivers responded with 12-yard scoring throws to Tomlinson and Antonio Gates. McAllister had a 1-yard TD run as the Saints led 23-17 at the half.
The Saints went up 30-17 in the third quarter on Brees' 1-yard pass to Mark Campbell. Rivers had a 5-yard TD pass to Brandon Manumaleuna negated when guard Kris Dielman was flagged for holding. The Chargers settled for a 24-yard field goal by Nate Kaeding, making it 30-20.
Mike Carney went over from 1 yard to make it 37-20 for the Chargers. After a 31-yard field goal by Kaeding, the Chargers recovered an onside kick and Rivers threw a 14-yard TD pass to Jackson with 7:29 to play to get within a touchdown.
On the next drive, Brees appeared to be intercepted by Eric Weddle, who stepped in front of Billy Miller. After a review, however, it was ruled that Weddle did not have control of the ball when he hit the ground.
Notes: The pre-game entertainment featured a British flavor with a performance by rock band Stereophonics. ... American R&B singer Ne-Yo sang the national anthem, with British soul diva Joss Stone performing "God Save the Queen." ... 19-year-old British swimmer Rebecca Adlington wore her two Beijing gold medals around her neck as she served as honorary captain of the Saints for the coin toss. ... A pre-game tailgate party outside Wembley featured New Orleans-based jazz bands and a Mardi Gras parade. ... The game was broadcast live in the UK on both Sky Sports and BBC2. ... Former NFL receiving great Jerry Rice was in the commentary booth for BBC.
[Associated Press;
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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