A pair of NFL superstars from Angus joined forces to give the New York Giants their biggest comeback in 74 years.
American footballer Graham Gano kicked a 34-yard field goal to secure a 31-28 win for the Giants against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.
He was assisted by fellow Arbroath native Jamie Gillan, who held the ball for Gano to make the kick with just 19 seconds on the clock.
The kick prompted jubilant scenes from fans who had made the 2,000-mile trip to Arizona for the game.
The Giants had been 20-0 down at half-time and were losing 28-7 during the third quarter.
THE BIGGEST @Giants COMEBACK IN OVER 75 YEARS!
Sealed by a Graham Gano Field Goal 😤🏴 #NYGiants pic.twitter.com/9thUX3lWMK— NFL UK (@NFLUK) September 17, 2023
A commentator during the coverage on American TV highlighted their Angus links, saying: “Gano and Gillon – born in the same Scottish town of Arbroath 10 years apart,” pronouncing the town as “arr-broth”.
2 sons of Arbroath make one of the New York Giants greatest comebacks 🏈 🏴 🇺🇸 👏 (yes it is Arbroath)
Jamie Gillon and Graham Gano 👏 pic.twitter.com/vm9qaaYARW— Scottish Football Kits mk II 🏴 (@scottishkits2) September 17, 2023
Gano grew up at RAF Edzell when his father was posted there as a US Navy master chief petty officer.
He played in the 2016 Super Bowl, where his Carolina Panthers side lost to the Denver Broncos.
Prior to the showcase, Gano said: “Most athletes in America say they’ll go to Disneyland when they win a championship, but I’ll come home to Arbroath.
“My wife loves Scotland and I want my kids to see my country.”
Graham Gano and Jamie Gillan’s Arbroath links
He later went on to say that his father’s time in Angus helped “shape him as a man”.
Born in Arbroath in 1997, Gillan was brought up in Morayshire and attended Merchiston Castle School in Edinburgh.
His family moved to Maryland in 2013 due to his father being stationed as a member of the RAF there.
Both Gano and Gillan got to meet friends and family last year, when the Giants travelled to London to beat the Green Bay Packers at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
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