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Another intense game of pingpong unfolded on Tuesday in the center of the Giants locker room between Saquon Barkley and Davis Webb while Leonard Williams was at the adjacent table playing doubles.

The top-seeded Eagles and the foreboding Linc loom on Saturday night in an NFC divisional-round playoff game and the bond among Giants players who care and fight for one another seems to have grown even tighter.

To the Brian Daboll Giants, it doesn’t matter who they play, where they play the game or when they play it.

They will show up, and they will show up believing.

“Look, right? We’re fine for the day at 2:30,” special teams ace Carter Coughlin told The Post, “and guys are sitting here playing pingpong. We’ve got four square, we’ve got games you play as kids, you know what I mean? Guys don’t want to leave the facility. It’s something to be said.”

What kind of ball for four square? “I think we’ve been playing with a volleyball,” Coughlin said, “but it’s kinda just whatever ball we can grab.”

The ball they prefer is a football.

Why the Giants believe:

“Well, I think you’ve seen from the first week that we’ve got a bunch of dudes that are just grinders on this team,” Coughlin said. “Doesn’t matter how the game’s going, doesn’t matter the previous drive, doesn’t matter the previous play. That’s one thing the coaches continue to preach is take it play by play. So when you put all that into perspective, that’s how you see our team having comebacks, our team doing all these different things that are just us responding to adversity and making the most of it.


  Andrew Thomas has felt a different vibe around the Giants this season. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST Andrew Thomas has felt a different vibe around the Giants this season. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST

“So I think that we’ve got a really mentally tough team, and I think that that’s shown throughout our games. It’s the same thing every single week, right? Win each play and go 1-0 for the week, and obviously this is a really tough opponent, but we’ve built up that mental fortitude throughout the season to get ready for something like this.”

Evan Neal knows what a team that believes feels like and looks like from his days at Nick Saban’s Alabama.

“We’ve been through a lot this year, been in a lot of dogfights, won a lot of games we weren’t supposed to win,” Neal told The Post. “I feel that just all adds to our confidence, but above all, we just have great guys in this locker room. Guys that want to compete, guys that are unselfish and guys that want to win.”

Neal recalls Auburn and Florida as the most hostile college environments he faced.

“It gets loud in stadiums, that can give somewhat of an advantage whenever you’re trying to communicate and make adjustments and make line calls and stuff like that, but,” Neal said, “the crowd can’t play.”

Bring it on anyway.

“It’s gonna give us energy, absolutely,” Coughlin said. “When you think about the Minnesota game, it was really, really loud, right? But you can just feel the energy. You can feel it from our bench, their bench, their fans, our fans. So I expect the same thing Saturday, but I’m also planning on the Giants fans traveling pretty well and matching their energy and matching how loud they are.”


  Brian Daboll has the Giants in the Divisional Round in his first season as head coach. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST Brian Daboll has the Giants in the Divisional Round in his first season as head coach. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST

Only 8:15 p.m. Saturday matters now.

“It’s nothing but Us Against The World,” Andrew Thomas said.

Why the Giants believe:

“I feel like no matter what, we’re willing to play the next play, get punched in the mouth, but put the ball down, play again and just keep coming back,” Oshane Ximines told The Post.

One for all and all for one.

“It’s fun out there on Sunday when you watch all your brothers make plays,” Ximines said. “I feel like we all came together this year and it’s been fun.”

Credit GM Joe Schoen for bringing in so many smart, tough, dependable players and for hiring Daboll. Who will listen to his 10 captains.

Why the Giants believe:

“I would say resiliency,” Thomas said. “We’ve had some tough games this year, a lot of close-score games and we continue to fight regardless of what happens. We don’t have ‘Me guys,’ everyone is celebrating when someone makes a play and … you could feel the love, and I think that’s what helps us out on game days.”


  Dexter Lawrence’s rise is a major reason his Giants teammates think they have a shot. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST Dexter Lawrence’s rise is a major reason his Giants teammates think they have a shot. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST

The vibe is markedly different than it was last season under Joe Judge.

“It started with Daboll, the energy in the building just felt different,” Thomas said, “and I think that’s carried over to the season, and obviously helps when you’re winning too, so, it’s a great feeling.”

The sound of pingpong balls never stopped.

Why the Giants believe:

“I’d probably say fight. We’re always fighting, through the final whistle whether the game’s going well or not, I don’t think there’s been one time when the team’s really shown any give,” Graham Gano said. “We got a bunch of guys that are relentless, and just have each other’s backs.”

The Eagles will be trying to sweep all three games from the Giants.

Why the Giants believe:

“ ’Cause we believe in each other. If we play the way we can play,” Jon Feliciano told The Post, “we don’t think we can lose.”

Other than the belief in yourself, what makes you a hard team to beat? “We got Daniel Jones, Saquon on offense, and on defense, we have probably the best interior D-lineman … probably the best D-lineman in the league.”

That would be Dexter Lawrence.

Why the Giants believe:


  Spike Lee speaks with New York Giants Tony Jefferson along with Jason Pinnock (L) and Terrell Burgess (R) in the first half at the Madison Square Garden. Jason Szenes for the New York Post Spike Lee speaks with New York Giants Tony Jefferson along with Jason Pinnock (L) and Terrell Burgess (R) in the first half at the Madison Square Garden. Jason Szenes for the New York Post

“I think we just play hard for each other,” Lawrence said.

In his book, “A Team To Believe In,” Tom Coughlin wrote this about the Super Bowl XLII Giants:

“How did we go from being the brunt of harsh words and jokes to being on top of the football world?

“Our players maintained a great attitude. There was no finger-pointing and no blaming others; there was only support, especially when times were tough.

“Out players took responsibility seriously and held themselves and their teammates accountable for their actions. Along this line, I believe the leadership council allowed for better communication between me and them.

“We were at our best when our best was needed, as John Wooden would point out.”

Why do the Giants believe?

“Rode a lot of waves … battle-tested,” Webb said. “One of those two.”

One of those two or both of those two?

“Both of those two.”

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