The San Francisco 49ers have beaten the Arizona Cardinals with a late Phil Dawson field goal.

It was Dawson's 27-yard field goal that saw the 49ers take a 3-0 advantage, and they were soon further ahead when Anquan Boldin secured a touchdown from Colin Kaepernick's four-yard pass.

The first quarter ended with the 49ers easily on top and Vernon Davis added another touchdown to put his side in control.

Arizona began to emerge in the second quarter and were rewarded when Jake Ballard made it to the endzone for their first points of the match.

Neither side could add to the score in the third quarter as the 49ers took their 10-point lead into the fourth. Jay Feely added three with his kick for the Cardinals, who were level with their opponents when Andre Roberts made the endzone and Feely kicked the extra.

It appeared as if overtime would be needed to separate the sides, but Dawson showed his kicking quality at the death to secure a win for the 49ers.