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The 49ers and Giants have reached the fourth quarter with the 49ers holding a slim 14-10 lead. They have picked up a pair of possessions, first on a Gore ten-yard run and then on a Walker catch followed by a roughing penalty against the Giants. The 49ers saw Tarell Brown go down after colliding with Dashon Goldson, so Tramaine Brock will likely come in as the third corner.

It's gonna be a tough fourth quarter, but the 49ers have a chance to extend their lead and create some kind of cushion to close things out. It's 15 more minutes for one of these two teams to go to the Super Bowl. I know who we're rooting for!

GO NINERS!

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The 49ers and Giants have reached halftime with the Giants leading 10-7. The score is close but the Giants seem to have the momentum at this point. The 49ers have gotten some solid rushing going, but the passing game has slowed to a crawl since the big touchdown pass to Vernon Davis. Excluding the pass to Davis, Alex Smith is 1/6 for 6 yards with the only completion being a throwback to Frank Gore. The rushing game has looked pretty solid as Frank Gore has 46 yards on nine carries with some big chunks to get first downs.

The big problem though is the defense's performance against Victor Cruz. The Giants receiver has eight receptions for 125 yards and has been torching the 49ers secondary. If the 49ers don't figure out a way to contain Cruz, they're going to be in some big trouble. In the first game, Cruz had a couple key drops that could've gone for big plays. They need to figure out some way to slow Cruz. The Giants start the second half with the ball and a three point lead. The defense needs to step up right away.

GO NINERS!

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The 49ers have taken the early lead in the 2012 NFC Championship Game but this game is looking to be a muddy dogfight. The kickoffs have been fairly short and we saw the 49ers almost cough up a fumble on a reverse attempt. I'm not so sure a reverse in the rain is wise today.

There have been two huge plays for the 49ers thus far. Alex Smith connected with Vernon Davis on a 73-yard catch and run touchdown to give the 49ers a 7-0 lead. Then, later in the quarter, the Giants were stopped on a 4th and 1 rushing attempt by Brandon Jacobs. You can view both plays after the jump.

For now I'm just happy the 49ers have taken the early lead and are not playing from behind. They have proven they can come back, but in this weather, every advantage is needed. This will not be a pretty game.

GO NINERS!

Continue reading this post »

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Well, that was not a pretty quarter. The 49ers got a field goal on the board to extend their lead to 20-14, but the Saints are driving into 49ers territory to start the fourth quarter. This game has been bogged down as the 49ers uglied this one up like nobody's business. They may just need to have their defense pull out the biggest fourth quarter of the season.

GO NINERS!

The internet is down in the press box, which is where our lovable dictator Fooch happens to be, so I'm jumping on a quick third quarter thread. Our 49ers are up 17-14, a little disappointing to me considering the four turnovers. You'd expect a bigger margin than that, especially at home. Still, it's a lead. When you enter the half with a lead you feel like you won the first game. The first half was game one and now the 49ers are going for the sweep, but with a three-point lead to start it off, ya dig?

I'm happy with the play of Dashon Goldson, but unhappy with the lack of putting the foot down. Donte Whitner is like a man fired out of shotgun on every single play, and they're hitting hard. The offense really need to pick it up and get back to that short passing game they were using early on, taking the big shots when necessary. Chilo Rachal came in, Alex Smith got killed, he left, and Smith was fine.

Hopefully Jonathan Goodwin is good to go, able to stay out there. Either way, despite some disappointment, the 49er are in the lead, and it's going to stay that way. It will most definitely stay that way. GO NINERS!

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Well, one quarter down and the 49ers have stunned the Saints early, holding a 14-0 lead and possession deep in Saints territory on a fumbled kick return. There is a lot of football left and the Saints can make big plays, so the 49ers absolutely must go for the throat NOW.

GO NINERS!

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Date: January 14, 2012
Time: 1:30pm PST
Location: Bill Walsh Field @ Candlestick Park, San Francisco CA
Odds Shark Spread: 49ers +3.5, O/U 47
Weather: 66°F, 4mph NNE Wind, 0% chance of rain
TV Broadcast: FOX - Kenny Albert, Daryl Johnston, Tony Siragusa
Local Radio: 107.7 The Bone, 680/1050 KNBR - Ted Robinson, Eric Davis
National Radio: Westwood One - Kevin Kugler, Mark Malone, Scott Kaplan
Spanish Radio: KIQI 1010-AM, KATD 990-AM - Armando Botello, Juan Carlos Sierra, Matias Godinez, Melvin Moran
Saints Coverage: Canal Street Chronicles

Sports Bar Thread

Injuries
49ers: Questionable - Delanie Walker (jaw), CB Chris Culliver (knee, illness), WR Ted Ginn (ankle), WR Kyle Williams (concussion), DT Ray McDonald (hamstring)

Saints: Out - TE John Gilmore (toe), WR Lance Moore (hamstring); Questionable - LB Jonathan Casillas (knee); Probable - WR Robert Meachem (knee), S Roman Harper (ankle), LB Jonathan Vilma (knee)

Well, here we are. Five years of Niners Nation and it's finally playoff time. I don't think much else has to be said. I'll be around to get in-game threads up and James will have the first couple of recap posts. I'll be tweeting throughout the game from @ninersnation, so hit me up if you're on twitter during the game. Time to take care of business.

GO NINERS!