American Football: Manning steals Panthers' place in Super Bowl

The appearance of the New England Patriots in their second Super Bowl in three years was hardly a surprise, but at the start of the season, few would have expected that the Carolina Panthers would be their opponents when American football reaches its climax at Super Bowl XXXVIII in Houston on 1 February.

The Patriots duly booked their place with an uncompromising 24-14 victory over the Indianapolis Colts, while the Panthers secured their surprise spot by winning 14-3 in Philadelphia. In the latter affair, the star of the show was a player called Manning, while in the former, another player called Manning was transformed from hero to villain.

Allseason, the Colts had been inspired by their brilliant quarterback, Peyton Manning. He had thrown a career-low 10 interceptions in the regular season - a remarkably low number - then cemented his reputation with two flawless efforts in the post-season.

That counted for nothing in the snow flurries of Massachusetts, where Manning found himself confounded at every turn. The Patriots hurried and hassled him all day, forcing four interceptions, three of which Ty Law claimed.

New England's Law enforcement meant the scoreline barely reflected the manner of the Colts' humbling. A late touchdown from Manning to Marcus Pollard only flattered the Colts. The Patriots, with a touchdown from Tom Brady to David Givens, and five Adam Vinatieri field goals, were always in control.

The Patriots boast the NFL's most complex defence and Manning, the best reader of opposition tactics in the game, was simply bamboozled. "I made some bad throws and bad decisions," he admitted. "I felt I did my part well to get us to this point, and I needed to do my part to win this game, and I didn't do it. I feel accountable and personally responsible."

So no place for Peyton in the Super Bowl, but his unrelated namesake Ricky is there after his three interceptions ensured an upset win for the Carolina Panthers in Philadelphia.

The Eagles had reached this stage in each of the last two seasons, only to fall short. The pre-game predictions said that it would be third time lucky. Instead, the unheralded Panthers completed the greatest transformation in the game's history.

Two season ago, they lost 15 in a row but now, in only the ninth year of the franchise's history, they are in their first-ever championship game.

The Carolina quarterback, Jake Delhomme, opened the scoring with a 24-yard pass to Muhsin Muhammad, and the running back DeShaun Foster made it safe with a touchdown in the third quarter. The rest of the victory was down to a stellar display from Manning and the rest of Carolina's defence.

In their previous game, Philadelphia's electrifying quarterback, Donovan McNabb, had rallied his side with 107 rushing yards, a post-season quarterback record, and some dazzling throws. Containing McNabb was the key for Carolina, and Manning's interceptions were vital.

Equally important was a late hit from Greg Favors, which left McNabb in pain with torn rib cartilage and unable to complete the contest.

"If you cut off the head of the monster, the body will die too," the defensive tackle Brentson Buckner said. The strategy worked perfectly, taking the unfashionable Panthers to Houston with chips on their substantial shoulder pads.

"The NFL world didn't want us," Buckner added. "Nobody wanted to see the Panthers in the Super Bowl, but now you've got to deal with it." The Patriots will attempt to deal with it a week from Sunday, in what could be the most physically bruising Super Bowl of all.

AFC CHAMPIONSHIP: New England 24 Indianapolis 14. NFC CHAMPIONSHIP: Carolina 14 Philadelphia 3.