Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
Michael Dickson has become the second Australian to play in a Super Bowl win, his booming boot decisive in Seattle’s smothering 29-13 defeat of New England.
The 30-year-old punter starred as the Seahawks turned the screws at San Francisco’s Levi’s Stadium and the Patriots failed to score until the final quarter.
The Sydney product – the Seahawks’ longest-serving player, in his eighth season – averaged 47.5 yards on seven punts and was faultless holding for Jason Myers’ five-of-five field goals.
Dickson’s well directed, right-footed cannons regularly pinned the Pats deep in their own end.
He had commentators raving when a final-quarter, 55-yard bomb settled one yard from the goal line to snuff out any hopes of a New England comeback.
Running back Kenneth Walker starred as they built a 19-0 lead, the Seahawks’ defence stifling the Patriots and rookie quarterback Drake Maye, who was sacked six times.
Two-time All-Pro Dickson joins Philadelphia’s Bankstown-born Jordan Mailata, who broke the drought last year, as the only Aussies to play in a Super Bowl triumph.
Fellow punters Ben Graham (Arizona, 2009), Mitch Wishnowsky (San Francisco, 2020) and Arryn Siposs (Philadelphia, 2023) all played in losses while Jesse Williams has a ring but was on the injury list when Seattle won their only other title 2014.
Part of the Swans’ AFL academy, Dickson trained with future star Isaac Heeney but was overlooked in the draft.
He moved to Melbourne and linked with Prokick Academy in a move that sent him to the University of Texas, where he became a Longhorns cult hero and was the first punter to claim the Texas Bowl MVP.
Drafted by Seattle in 2018, Dickson signed a $A23.25 million, four-year contract extension last year and was the only player on the field on Sunday (Monday AEDT) with claims as the highest-paid in his position.
The league will stage a first regular-season match in Australia later this year, when the Los Angeles Rams face the San Francisco 49ers at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
