New York Parade | Giant turnout shows love for champs

NEW YORK — The weather forecast called for showers in New York on Tuesday, but the Giants got deluged by paper, cheers and virtual hugs instead.

Tons of confetti and toilet paper rained down on the NFL team as it rode on Broadway through the Canyon of Heroes with the Super Bowl trophy it claimed by upsetting the New England Patriots 17-14 Sunday in Super Bowl XLII.

For a few hours, the corner of Broadway and Wall Street — the symbolic center of the financial world — turned into party central for legions of football fans celebrating the city's first sports championship, and ticker-tape parade, since 2000.

"I've been to Mardi Gras, New Year's Eve in Times Square and Carnival in Rio, and this beats them all," said Lori Pletenik, who returned from Arizona, where she had gone to see the Super Bowl.

The crowd was good-natured, although police did report a dozen or so arrests, mostly for disorderly conduct. Fans were in such a good mood they chanted, "Clean those streets," as sanitation trucks drove up Broadway.

On a day for jumping and whooping it up, Giants defensive end Michael Strahan showed the throngs of jubilant fans how it is done.

Strahan fires up the team with a leap he calls "stomping you out." And with that, he jumped skyward on the podium near City Hall, practically lifting his knees to his shoulders.

"We would like to extend this to every other team in the NFL and particularly for the last team we defeated, the New England Patriots," he said. "Because you know what we did to you? We stomped you out!"

Fans made a plea to Strahan, who is contemplating retirement. "One more year!" came the chant as soon as he got to the podium.

"One more year?" the 36-year-old Strahan said. "We'll see."

Quarterback Eli Manning, Super Bowl most valuable player, said, "I believe that we play football for the greatest city in the world, and all of you all deserve to have the greatest football team in the world."

The loudest cheers during the parade were for a float that included Manning, Strahan, coach Tom Coughlin and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg.

After the Manhattan love fest, the team took buses to New Jersey, where it was met by a crowd of more than 20,000 at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford.