ToffeeWeb MailBag |
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 ToffeeWeb Letters from
October 2005 |
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With every scrambled win we get, Moyes and his blind faithfull get a stay of execution. The game against Newcastle could have easily gone the other way and what then? We still played kick and rush football with plenty of dodgey defending. The difference was that this week the ref was with us. And that's what I have said previously. With Moyes and his tactics we are continually relying on luck to win games and not a genuine game plan. West Brom was a disaster and the Newcastle result showed us what we can really do... or did it? The refereeS played a big part in both of those games. One decision a game is all it takes to make or break us and still some of our fans can't see it. Beattie is getting rave reviews in the press from Moyes. What for? A striker's job is to put the ball in the back of the net. Link up play and chasing back are great attributes to have but putting sitters away comes first. We need to get a grip of our selves and realise that we can't go on like this all season. We had a lifetime's good luck last year and can't rely on referees to decide the outcome of games every week. As for this ridiculous Kr�ldrup situation, why can't Davey Moyes talk about the Danish Lord Lucan as much as he does about Beattie or Richard Wright? It's starting to become like an episode of the X-Files and the whole situation is very strange. Although I have my doubts about Moyes and his
funny little ways, I will still be at Blackburn
at the weekend. You know what they say: there's
a Sucker born every minute and may be I am just
a sucker like the rest off you. See you at Ewood
boys. New Striker I can't beleive that Everton's scout in Ireland has not had young Thompson watched as he possess pace, strength, can head, and is a poacher as well. It puzzles me that we are mentioned as having an interest in someone like Trundle who in my opinion is finished as far as top-flight football is concerned but our scouts can't notice a rising star. For those of you looking to rule the eye over
Peter next saturday (10 December) Linfield's
match against Glentoran (League Cup Final) is on
Sky Digital BBC2 in Northerm Inreland. I shall
be taping it and would be keen to know if anyone
knows someone at the club who could look over
Peter's performance It's just not fair! That ref was shite, I have seen plenty of bad refs in my time, but on balance he was absolute shite to both teams. Football deserves better. All of the above between those two was in the heat of the moment was it not? The ref gave Weir a foul and Baby a foul from Cahill, he claims to have seen one incident not the other? Well call me old fashioned and stupid but what the fuck? Yet Mr perfect Shearer gets away with a very cynical foul and the FA can do Fuck All about it. Baby and Cahill are going to get 3 week suspensions and our next BBC World Cup cheat commentator is going to get what? I was one of those daft twats in the crowd applauding his last appearence at Goodison. shame on you Shearer, not even an apology. Finally where is our Captain in all this?
Being vocal about the injustice done. Well we
all know Davie Weir is not a Captain. Carol Service Disgrace Simple facts The catastrophe is that last summer was our last opportunity, clearly for a long time, to treat the fans and the club to a decent few games in the European competitions (not one opportunity but two!) and we failed embarrassingly - a complete and utter disgrace - and someone should be held accountable. But guess what, all has been forgotten - lost in the trauma of what we have endured thus far in the Premiership. All focus is on survival, not what we have
failed miserably to achieve. This transfer
window will be quite interesting, because what
quality and proven striker would want to come to
Goodison, when in all likelihood we will be in
the bottom three, come January 1st. Keane on Both I do not think that Tommy will return to you
but I do think that Moyes could become
successful if he signed BOTH Keane players in
transfer gap. It is all about ambition whether
you manage teams in England or elsewhere. FA punishment The Kr�ldrup Theory I think this is when he will be bedded in and
start to get his match fitness, so when Yobo
returns we'll see him slot in alongside the Big
Dane with Davie Wier making way. Thus setting in
motion the start of a new and improved defensive
partnership. What's your opinion, lads? Love the
site, COYB!! View from the Blue Our points total over the last 30 games is as
we know relegation form and it should come as no
suprise that we are already in a dog fight this
season. Moyes said it was his priority to sign a
striker in January; he is right �only this
priority was clear for all to see in the summer.
If it is correct that luck evens itself out over
the long term then we may well have not seen the
end of the wrong sort just yet! A Funny Lot So we`ve won three of last four games, that`s what quietens it down, but then again we`ve lost 18 of the 31 played this calendar year so should we be judging long term? The truth is none of us knows fook all... the
truth is there ain`t no truth, there probably
was. So let`s just keep hoping that things are
on the up ... and they are, at least until
Saturday. But, then again, if we lose at bloody
Blackburn.... as I said, a funny lot � us
Evertonians! Damned if he does...... Beattie's back Secondly, I think he showed a lot of good running and desire in the Newcastle game, showing that, at least in attitude and fitness, he is back in so much as he is the player David Moyes bought. Had he been fit for the earlier part of the
season, would we be in this mess now? I for one
doubt it. She-rar Arteta! Arteta! Arteta! My biggest worry is that top European clubs
come in for him. Moyes's best signing by a
mile... and just think, we wern't even going to
get him! Can I also just say Beattie was very
good on Sunday, despite missing his sitter. His
all-round play was excellent, the best he has
played for us. McFadden was superb too! The main
thing is keeping this consistent now! Up the
blues!! Loyalty and Team Selection I agree with the general comment made by Jim Hourigan (Fans COmment) that loyalty can be a hindrance, but I don't necessarily agree that this is an area that is holding Davey back. At the end of last season, he was prepared to let several of the club's most loyal and consistent servants go, rather than keep paying them their wages. So this doesn't show us that he is allowing his heart to override his head. I've never felt that Moyes plays anyone other than the best we have in that position. Last season, we had a bare bones squad so he had to rely on many players, including Weir, but he was still happy to risk losing some, and he did lose Stubbs. There is always a danger of trying to second-guess Moyes's team selection without knowing the full picture, and you therefore assume that Killer must be Moyes' illegitimate son. Whereas the actual truth of the matter is that Van der Meyde is still not fully match fit and Moyes wants to progress him gradually, and Killer is there to provide a replacement later in the game (maybe). Regardless of what you (or I) think of Killer's performances, Moyes obviously believes that Killer is the best person to carry out the specific task that Moyes has given him (whatever that may be) when he doesn't have VDM available. Don't forget, a team is not just about getting your best 11 out (Sven has proved that); it's about getting a team out with each person being the best for a particular job within that team from the players available. And I must admit, I'm still curious about why Kr�ldrup is still warming the bench, but I suspect it's not because Weir is the best centre-back we have, so it might be due to something else � maybe Weir works better with Yobo; maybe Weir holds the line with more authority than Kr�ldrup can; or maybe its something simpler like Kr�ldrup is still not 100% yet, and is working towards a January deadline when we know Yobo will be away for the African Nations Cup. Whatever the reason is, I'm sure Moyes picks the team he thinks will win. If he has doubts about a player's fitness, attitude or ability, he'll address those issues where he can. The trouble is we don't know the full story so people make assumptions, often incorrectly, about the reasons behind those decisions. I'm not saying that Moyes is God (as clearly
Dunc is God); however, not only is he human, so
are most of his team, and so are us fans, and in
a perfect world we'd all still pick a different
first XI, and different formations, and we may
even have different views on where our stadium
should be, but we shouldn't make assumptions
about what is going on in Davey's head � or if
we do, we should remember that that is all they
are, assumptions. Until he retires and brings
out his autobiography entitled "Killer - my
secret love child" then we'll never know the
full facts behind his decisions. Mikel Arteta Response to Jim Hourigan's piece Moyes was quoted as saying that he wanted to repay those players who got us into the top four last season and would do so by offering them extensions to their contracts. This to me showed one of Moyes�s huge weaknesses and displayed the fact to all that he does not seem to have a ruthless enough streak to his character when having to decide on such issues. It was clear that he should have moved on a number of his squad in the summer when their contracts expired. The two players mentioned in JH�s piece (Weir and Kilbane) clearly are not Premiership quality and it beggars belief how they continue to be picked ahead of others within the squad. Replace them? Well Weir was and has been replaced with Kr�ldrup but the saga of his non-selection is almost reaching the laughable stage. Weir was even given the captaincy?!?! How can it be that a player that was not good enough or young enough to be given a longer contract offer than a year is then given the highest playing honour within the club?!?! Kilbane? Well, sure there didn�t appear to be a ready made replacement with the players that were brought in, however players were available at a reasonable price (Aaron Lennon immediately springs to mind) so the reason for his retention and subsequent first-team selection is an absolute mystery. Others such as Naysmith were a complete joke. He has been found out on too many occasions at this level yet Moyes felt that he warranted a 3-year contract?!?!? Answers on a postcard for that one. The Pistone saga, again laughable that he turned down a one year extension and then when the going got tough in the market for Moyes he decides to throw in another year as well?!?! Then brings in two more left backs plus a floating one in the shape of Neville?! Adequate use of the pool of money and resources available to a manager (within any industry)? Doesn�t look like it to me?!?! Moyes needs to toughen up in this area and realise that loyalty can only go so far. It is about striking a balance between loyalty to your players and letting them know who is the boss. I still feel that Moyes has some way to go in getting to grips with this particular issue and it has been shown in his league performances so far. We reach a high position in the league in Moyes's first full season� he repays those average players with contracts or merely retains them for another year. A dreadful season follows as average players then take their foot off the gas. All those players are then told in no uncertain terms that as they are coming up to the end of their contracts they have something to prove� 4th place follows and he then repays those same average players (who none appeared to have a queue of clubs pursuing them!!!) with contract extensions and we find ourselves in our current predicament. Average players can only have �something to
prove� for so long, the class will never come to
the surface on these average journeymen and it
is why we are where we are at the moment. Per Who? Keano on way? Personally, I think he is exactly what we
need. The current players can't be trusted to
motivate themselves week in week out. Just a
glare from Keane would be more effective than a
thousand words from Davie Weir. Beattie Lets not get carried away I am not trying to be negative but Newcastle were extremely poor on Sunday and I feel our performance made us look far better than we actually were. I totally agree with the gentleman who talked about COMPOSURE!! or lack of it!! It frustrates me so much that a simple pass of ten yards cannot be executed and that on occassions we can't string six or seven passes together without losing the ball. Possession does breed confidence to an extent and other players will then try to make space. PLAY IT SIMPLE, LADS. Stop hoofing the ball up to Beattie and Co, and by-passing the midlfield. We do have some quality in the midfield with Arteta, Cahill and Neville. They can spread the play or do one-twos in close proximity. Arsenal do it brilliantly. I know we are not Arsenal but you don't see them lumping the ball upfield all the time. We might not have the pace up front but Dunc has got a good touch and so has Beattie (he just can't score from six yards!!) Maybe I am asking too much but lots more crosses from the wingers and some good technical passing within the midfield and we will be more attractive to watch and more effective. Well done to Yobo, Arteta and Faddie I felt that they were very solid. Davies looks extremely lightweight; give the armband to Neville as he is much more of a leader and does more talking to the players than Weir does. I think he is a poor captain. Well done the Blues, more performances like
that are needed. I am sure more chances will be
created and hopefully more goals!!!!!! Kenwright's dance with the devil What next? I'm firmly in the 'IMWT' section of the crowd but I am left wondering what we are going to do for the rest of the season. In theory a bit of consistency until Christmas and some good January buys should lead us comfortably to mid-table maybe even top 10. However, as we well know what should happen in theory, rarely does. Such as:
Mark Langley, Nottingham (28/11/05)
Home & Away Today`s style will do well at home but it is
clear that we need to be able to keep the ball
better to do well away - at least Li Tie helped
us to do that. McFadden put in some good crosses
but away from home he is far too weak and a
passenger. We`ll see how this result lifts us
for next week I suppose but it`s good to be able
to watch MOTD2 for a change. Cheers, Blues! So, the future is bright? So we gained a 1-0 victory today against a team in disarray... and yes, the performance was better... but surely this sums up the paucity of Everton's efforts for much of the season. Can you honestly say that this much effort has been put in in the majority of games this season? If you really think that the attack on Moyes and Kenwright is disgraceful then there are many Blues who are such people. Yobo was superb today, as was Beattie in the main, VDM, Hibbert and most of the pack. The question should be why do they not do this every week? Is this not evidence of lack of passion or pride in their performance? McFadden handled the ball and stayed on, denying the skunks a goal and himself being sent off. These things even out over the season so I am not too proud to say 'we were lucky' because we deserved the win. The true acid test comes in the next two games. If we can get three points or more from then, then perhaps we have turned the corner. You should not be attacking Blues for showing
concern at the poor form for almost 12 months of
our team. If we did not ask and demand better
then we would not be true supporters. IMWT Oh and rather than Sky helping football, it
is destroying its very core. The kick-off times
are pathetic. 1:30pm: the day is gone. What
about the kids playing Sunday league football
who have season tickets or their Dad's have
season tickets, what do you do? Who do you put
first? You can't let your team down by not
showing up and what a choice for the kid's Dad;
watch my son or Everton? It's bollocks. We have
had 12:45 on a Saturday, 5:30 Saturday, 11:15 on
a Sunday 3.00, 1.30, what the fuck is going on? Composure, Please! Having said this, the team on paper now is a lot better than we have had for a long time and you can only hope that things will eventually click. No doubt there are Championship players in our current squad (Bent, Kilbane, McFadden) but they got a limited look-in today, McFadden excepted. Has the penny dropped? There is no question these players need moving on; they were fine as stop-gaps. The personnel have changed a lot in the last 12 months and it will take time for a side to gel. A settled side and formation will help no end, and a goalscorer in January (as it was needed in the summer) is stating the bloody obvious. At 6'-5", tall I don�t think it is a gamble replacing Weir with Kr�ldrup and can someone tell me what�s happened to Vaughan? As someone who has watched EFC for the last 25 years, I find myself uttering the same word ad nauseam: COMPOSURE. My sister in her high heels could have put away Beattie's chance (why lash it?). Also, once a player receives a pass there is no need to punt it immediately (Neville, McFadden). I'm no manager but supposed professionals on �25k or �30k a week need to have the requirement instilled in them to look around before they pass or kick - is it that difficult to remember? Stick up a sign in the sodding dressing room - COMPOSURE! I too was beginning to waver with my support
for Moyes. There is no denying that the evidence
for the prosecution is mounting and that stat
about 12th best defensive is really clutching at
straws � why bother saying it? However, the
notion of sacking would be ridiculous - the
instability would consign us to the drop for
sure. I'm now a Moyes floating voter but results
against Blackburn, West Ham & Bolton will
determine whether I put a cross in the box � as
will who comes in January (if any) to address
that minor fundamental of scoring goals. The
result today has firmed up my vote for the
short-term only Back from the game ... After a well-fought first-half that could have favoured either side, I thought we totally outplayed the Geordies in the second period. I found myself thinking: Parker, Emre... not good enough for us! Davies and Arteta, quality lads, and Joe Yobo emerged as the next Mountfield. Tim Cahill returned and seemed to say "Hey, I'm what you're missing in midfield!". And what about McFadden? I never thought I would see him play so well; has he found a position to suit him? Another first today was seening players actually move to a position that allowed Tony Hibbert to make a worthwhile pass. If I were to be negative, I suppose the misses by McFadden, Beattie and Cahill could irk... but wasn't it a big change to see chances created!!! Coming out of the ground, many names were being mentioned for Man of the Match. For me, it was Davies but, hey, who cares? Choose your own as all the players put a shift in and, without being Milan-like, we left the Geordies to lick their wounds. After following the Blues for many years, I can only say that whether for or against the Manager (or indeed the club hierarchy), the only thing that changes anything is results. For change: get bad results; for continuity: get good results. Let's hope we take the Chelsea, Newcastle type results forward and leave Portsmouth, Wigan, WBA ones behind. Manager and players take heed. Relegation?? --- Nah, surely. Handball?? --- unintentional. See you at Blackburn - UP THE BLUES. Spot on Great team effort McFadden � Hand of God? In defence of Tony Marsh In defence of Tony Marsh - why is he destroying your will to live? He is stating facts that are uncomfortable but is at least displaying a realistic concept as to how Everton are declining rapidly under Moyes and Kenwright. This is without doubt one of the worst Everton teams to play in the blue jersey. They should be playing with skill, pride and passion. They display none. Four goals in 12 games! Can you or any other Evertonian honestly say that they are confident we will even make a decent chance let alone score. Even when we do make a chance, Marcus Bent is inevitably the player who gets it and he has a worse strike rate than the Rat! Keep it up Tony because all of the IMWT fools
will be crying in their beer when the Moyesiah
leads us to the unpromised land known as the
Championship. Manager Change
Russ , Cheshire (27/11/05) "No club spirit"? You, sir, are a numpty. � Michael
Quaking in their boots He does not accept mediocrity and one can
only imagine with a tingle in the spine what he
would make of our set-up. I wonder if a
Keane-type of bloodletting would make or break
that slender thread keeping us in the top
flight?. Currently, from Boardroom to Bootroom,
our current mob of underachievers sing each
others praises on the road to ruin. Can they or,
more importantly, the supporters handle a
Keane-like barrage? I`m no fan of Moyes but..... I know it may be too late by then but it may at least settle all the arguements about his ability... or lack of it! Perhaps next time, the Chairman won`t rely on
the outgoing manager to recommend his successor
nor act like a star-struck schoolgirl when the
new guy strings a few results together... But
don`t bet on it! Undone Deal "I don`t imagine I shall be given much money to play with but with a bit of luck our present strikers will go out and score five goals before Christmas and then we won`t have to sign anybody." So my dream that salvation was at hand has
lasted less than 24 hours... such is the lot of
an Evertonian. Don't forget, Tony Now is the hour.... To make matters worse, Moyes wants to sign his fifth goalkeeper in three years and thinks the best way to go about it is to slag off the one one he paid most for and, presumably, wants to sell on. One of your other correspondents asks who would replace Moyes. Surely that should be who could be worse. Similarly, he asks who would want to come and the answer again is does it really matter. His final question was that, with no money available, could he work with the players Moyes bought. The answer may well be that he couldn't but is that any different from what Moyes is doing. We all want Moyes to succeed because that
means Everton improving but there comes a time
when we all have to accept the bleeding obvious. Hej! I visit the ToffeeWeb site at least once a
day and now I just thought, why don't you
publish this information on the top of your
start page? It would be really convenient for me
and other Evertonians. Please consider it! Roy Keane At 34, he's a damn sight better than anything we have. He would organise the midfield, help us to win a ball and keep it � WHICH WE CAN'T DO NOW! And hopefully he could strike up a good partnership with Arteta. His best days are behind him but he's still one of the best in the business and if he stayed fit he would transform our midfield which is what we desperately need to happen. He is a nark but I'm sure he could keep this
in check while we fight our way up the League
until he too realises that Moyes is an idiot! You can fool some of the people... How anyone can still take Moyes seriously after the shite he came out with is beyond me. How much more proof do people out there need? Well, according to Alex Highton from London, a lot more. He says it's utterly ludicrous to call Moyes the worst manager ever � "In what way?" Well Alex where do I begin? Under Mr David Moyes we have become the laughing stock of not only England but the whole of Europe to. Statistics can be misleading and I am no number cruncher so here is my personal opinion as to why Moyes is the worst ever.
Everton Football Club always have their ups and downs (mostly downs) but I have never been so concerned as I am now. I believe DM to be a genuine and honest man. I also believe he is out of his depth at this level and has been found out. So we are supposed to sit back and kid our selves things will get better, are we? Peter Jones lives in Canada and he understands more about Moyes and Co than people who actually live here. What the fuck's going on? The league table doesn't lie, they say. Well,
somebody is telling fibs because thousands of
Evertonians think we are doing just fine. To all
you Lemmings out there: Don't do it, the drop's
a lot further than you think. Clean Sweep? Maybe it's not a new manager that would cure our ills but a clean sweep at the top to make way for people who make the right crucial decisions at the right time? Utopia, maybe... but de rigeur at many lesser clubs than ours. Come Sunday, I will be as optimistic as ever and cheer the lads on but, with each game, that nagging feeling gets stronger. Three points and the Tetleys will tell me we can now go on and climb the table; defeat and the realist will tell me we are in for a long hard fingernail-biting season. See you Sunday - UP THE BLUES Richard Dodd's Comments Your strong support for our manager is admirable. However, if he has so much knowledge and judgement, why didn't he make a striker a priority during the summer? Why did he fail to sign so many quality players and give contracts to Naysmith, Kilbane, Pistone etc when everyone knows they are absolute shite? Also, whatever rumour is true or untrue, something is obviously not right with Kroldrup. Why the fuck would you have a �5M, 6ft-5in, 26-year-old Danish international centre half sat on the bench for six games (at least)? If I'm honest, I'd say Moyes is a great coach. He'd be a fabulous Number 2 to Alex Ferguson and many other top managers. A great guy to go out and put the players through their paces on the training ground, and role around in the mud with them in his trackie. However, a manager needs to be able to strike deals in the transfer market and attract top players to a big "WELL SUPPORTED" club like Everton. He should also be decent at tactics, eg, if you're 3-1 down in a Euorpean tie, shut the fucking shop and take your away goal home. Or, if you're getting twatted by West Brom away, leave your strikers on, take the shit one with the pornstar hair-do off and put the big guy upfront! If Moyes does it for us, great. If things continue the way they have in the last 9 months he should be shown the door. The man is paid to put our club where it should be, the same applies to the players. Every Evertonian could see that we needed a
replacement for Gravesen and a quality striker
as priority during the summer, that much was
obvious 3 months before the end of last season.
Now we're all hoping for the same in January,
lets hope Dilly-Dally Davey's not already left
it too late by then, eh! Blame! His biggest fault though is that he doesn't seem to understand the modern game and is loyal to a fault. Hence he backs managers like Moyes and Smith when its obvious that they are floundering. He has to sanction the manager's purchases and sign off on contracts, but isn't it really the manager's job to get that bit right? As far as I can see, Kenwright's role is to back the manager; that he has done, � the fault lies in the fact that we have the wrong manager. Rob Fox goes on about how things keep going in circles... well don't we need a manager to break the cycle? He was a bit non-commital regarding Moyes in the transfer market. I believe Moyes's biggest failing is in his ability to identify quality players; I think his transfer dealings are a total disaster. He has wasted all the Rooney and 4th-place money on rubbish that nobody else wanted; we all know the players I'm on about and they are our next generation of unshiftable deadwood that the next manager is going to have to persevere with. Thanks very much, Mr Moyes! Not only has he signed utter garbage, the type of player to fit into his chosen system is absurd. Beattie as a lone striker in 4-5-1! is ridiculous; I'd have expected even the PE teacher in him to get that right and go for someone with speed. Add to that a pedestrian defence, except for Yobo, and it means we have to sit deep for fear of pacy strikers, yet our opposition can push up and laugh at Beattie trying to lumber past them with absolutely no fear of being caught out for speed. I know they are no world beaters but Paul Jewel spent less than the Kr�ldrup fee on Camara (fast and skillful) and Damien Francis (an imposing midfielder) � both of whom would walk into our team right now. It's not hindsight either: I've been saying the same thing ever since Beattie was deemed worth a contract, never mind our record �6�M fee by the astute Mr Moyes. If his transfer dealings aren't enough to make you want to scream, then the thought of who he has re-signed surely will... Kilbane, Pistone, Naysmith and Weir would find it hard to get into a Championship team. His judgement is his biggest fault, but it's one of the most important areas of management. It's not as if his tactics or teams play attractive losing football either; its boring, ugly, losing football. His statements last night about the 12th-best defensive record are surely a final clutch at straws!! Is he taking the piss? Only Sunderland have a worse goal difference, a more pertinent indicator, and we have THE worst scoring record in Europe! Oh, and I'm sick of hearing how Moyes is
Everton through and through... get a grip, 4
years ago he'd never given us a second
thought... he's just an employee but one that's
soon to prove one of the most damaging in our
history. Thank you Rob In his latest piece, Rob gives a balanced view on where we are at the moment. Since last Saturday, the casual Mailbag reader would be forgiven for thinking we are already doomed instead of just TWO points off the pace - with a game in hand! To those who doubt our manager`s knowledge, work ethos, judgement and love for this Club, can I refer them to a feature that appeared a few months ago in World Soccer, which set out in great detail his approach to the job. It also calls the lie on the rumour that he had never watched Kr�ldrup before his signing. Strange how anything positive about Moyes
gets overlooked in your very exhaustive sweep of
all things Everton, isn`t it? Moyes: the real problem But, if Moyes is tactically negative, it is in the transfer market that his attitude becomes very puzzling. Peter Knight's excellent letter sums up much of what I feel. To emphasize the point, let's look at the Kr�ldrup fiasco. He is the third most expensive player we've ever bought, yet after four months he has not played a game! Is he weak in the air as rumours suggest? Was he really not watched by Moyes before a bid was made? Is he really not better than Weir who is great-hearted, but slow and, to be frank, looks three years past his sell-by date? Has our manager a clue in the transfer market? He bought Beattie, Wright, Naysmith, Davies and Kilbane and a host of other signings that don't bear scrutiny. His successes, such as Yobo, Cahill and Arteta (whom he nearly let slip) are a minority. Am I convinced that Keane for all his skill and speed is as committed to his teams as I want my strikers to be? No, but I hope the manager isn't just buying him because he feels it would be popular or because, he doesn't know who else to buy. Our Davy is your prototype dour Lowlander and
his team refelects that. I hope he proves me
wrong. At least, I believe he is honest, but I
don't want to go onto the real problem � our
beloved ego known as Kenwright! Gaz's predictions 1, Gary Naysmith's weekend predictions for results make no mention of the EFC game. Was he unwilling to bend his tipping integrity? "0-2 geordies: ever since I got crocked we've been shite". I know, I know: why did I even read Nayce's tips? I wondered how he earned his five grand (or whatever) this week. 2, In the build-up to Newcastle game, the 'head-to-head' between players is Yobo vs Boumsong. Our best player versus their worst. Why no Owen versus Bent? Parker versus Davies? On a seperate issue: I was at least glad that
Richard Wright's role seems to have been
finished at the AGM. Since in the two years it's
taken DM to admit/realise this, his value has
depreciated perhaps tenfold, isn't there some
argument for learning from past mistakes and
admitting Davies and Beattie haven't worked out
at the end of this season (assuming neither turn
it round, of course) and try and maybe get some
cash back? More PR If we want top players to join us, as a club we have got to put ourselves into the public arena on a regular basis. I am sick and tired reading about Wenger and Morinho or Ferguson and Keane. Peter Crouch doesn't score goals either, but he gets far more coverage than our whole team!(Is it something about 'strikers' from Southampton?) We can't do something exciting on the pitch, but we can start doing something off it to get in the national (or international) press. Not that I'm advocating, but Big Dunc did when he was at Rangers and it got him lots of coverage. Can't Bungalow Bill let out a compromising luvvie story from his Corrie days? The more published stories that carry our team's name (good or bad - no such thing as bad publicity), the more likely a player is to consider us because he will have heard of us. Sadly its not just about what happens on the pitch in this day and age. ps: Just a line to let you know how much I
enjoy reading your site. I know how much effort
it takes to keep a website updated on a regular
basis and I would like to congratulate you all
on a job well done. Perhaps you could take your
work ethos to Bellefield? Something to boast about! Most of the �30M he`s blown on players will
never be recovered because they`re serially
injured or simply can`t play. It doesn`t matter
whether or not Kenwright sticks with him - it`s
too late, we`re serially fooked. And it`s all
down to him! Roy Keane We have the chance to sort one position out
right now by signing Roy Keane. If he stays fit
he would transform the team dramatically. But
what's the management doing to get him? Nothing.
And the truth is Moyes is probably scared to
sign Keane because he might show him up. Another
example of this manager holding the team back
instead of doing something positive to get the
team away from the bottom of The Premiership.
More comedians Then you get into work and you read the great great one's synopsis and amongst the shite is a pure gem about just having to work on a few things with PK who he paid �5M for but isn't quite the ready article - so much for all those detailed scouting missions! And it was the same a few weeks ago when, prior to Van der Meyde's debut, he declares "we've watched him in training and he looks like he crosses a decent ball" - why didn't he notice this before paying �2M? Does anyone really really believe that the
club is in safe hands because I find it all
really scary. Maybe it's the the way they tell
them. Time for a change And can I just say: Michael, what are you
smoking lad? How can you defend the players and
manager like you did on my last letter? You say
it is not in the job description of the players
to give a fuck about the fans, well yes it is
when your freezing your bollocks off in the
Midlands watching that pile of shite. The fans
keep this club going and contribute to the
players' wages so I think they should give a
fuck about us instead of being a bunch of
money-grabbing selfish twats. No Shit, Sherlock! "Before the West Brom game we had the 10th best defensive record in the Premiership and even after it we are still 12th. But we have the worst goalscoring record in the Premiership. The goals return has not been good enough and that is the area we need to try and strengthen in January if possible." Is he being serious here? Everybody knew in the summer we needed a new striker; has it really taken until recently for Moyes to realise this too? I cannot accept the "before the West Brom game" statement either; for one Moyes's nose should be rubbed in that like when a dog shits on your carpet and two before West Brom we were still in a mess! Here is another gem, a real class qoute that had me in stitches (ya gotta laf): "Then if you look at who left the club in the last year - the likes of Bosnar, Kevin Campbell, Wayne Rooney, Thomas Gravesen and others". Eddie fuckin' Bosnar!!!!!!! So our troubles
are down to the fact that England's best player
and Eddie Bosnar were let go?! Done Deal Personally, I think his speed and awareness
will finally see Beattie ably supported up front
and thus in with a chance of showing his true
cababilities. COYB! Why didn`t we see it?
David Hall, Taunton (25/11/05)
Spot on! He is shockingly bad, and to all those
supporting him: You are just helping us along
the road to sure destuction. As Tony said, Don't
say you weren't warned! Michael should read more books! I noticed that you referred to a famous book
"The Power of Positive Thinking" when commenting
on a recent posting. Might I adivise you Michael
(and any others unsure about Moyes) to read
another famous book called The Peter
Principle. Sadly Mr. Moyes validates
perfectly the central premise of this book.....
that in all walks of life, people levitate to
the position of their maximum incompetence! David Moyes
He has managed 7th and 4 place finishes,
which I did not think was possible. So I can see
why some want him to go and some want him to
stay. Stop pretending I am not kidded by this current squad of players. Prime suspects:
I personally think Moyes has lost the Dressing Room judging by the body language of players; it is a mirror image of the season before last. Trouble is we can't whisk them off for karaoke in Texas in late November. If we've hit a glass ceiling with what we've got on the pitch, on the coaching side, in the boardroom, whatever... come out and say it. Stop pretending we're progessing because I have never been kidded last season's success. A 4th place finish has if anything exposed our lack of ambition. "We made a bid for him; We won't pay!" blah! blah! so much. I am sick of it all. Success to me is trophies, full stop. Being mediocre I can put up with if you are honest about it � but don't try and kid people. Why is Marcus Bent allowed to come out with stupid ill-thought-out statements on the back of a 4-0 defeat by a bad side? I think Moyes has lost the players not the plot. Yours Rantingly Yet another stick I have to confess to not being born in the days of Harry Catterick and I was only a young teenager when Howard Kendall was a faultless manager. But I understand those were the days when Kendall, Ball and Harvey never had a bad game; Joe Royle never missed a sitter; and neither Trevor Steven nor Sheedy overhit a cross! What joy that must have been! (We`ll conveniently forget that, in spite of all this perfection, the other lot got all the plaudits as they dominated Merseyside almost without a break!) All I do know is that, in two of his three full seasons, Moyes has won more than he lost and got us into league positions we could only dream of. After Walter Smith, Kendall Mk III, and the latter days of Joe Royle � who totally alienated fans and press alike � Davey came like a breath of fresh air to the younger, more animated supporters who don`t spend their lives endlessly harking back to Dixie, Lawton and Mercer. Time has moved on, my friends; it`s not the
same game as you keep going back to and it never
will be again. So let's stop being morbid, enjoy
the good days � and we have had those under
Moyes � and put the disappointments in their
place. It`s only a game after all! Moyes, your time is almost up He made major mistakes in the summer
(spending roughly �25M since January) and our
European adventure lasted just a month! He has
taken this club as far as he possibly can but
for me he has made too many mistakes and his
time is almost up! Let's go and beat Newcastle!! Sorry Gordon? Surely if Walker was judged a failure after just 34 games in charge (Jan-Nov 1994) it`s only fair to look at Moyes`s record over the same number of games in THIS calendar year. That comes out as P34 W10 L21 for a loss average of a staggering 62%. On that record, perhaps we should add an
apology to Walker as well but somehow I suspect
we shall have to go on suffering `the brightest
young manager in the game` for sometime to come. Brief response to Tony Marsh "A manager is always judged on his last
result" �Correct! In response to Tony Marsh Congratulations all round `There is no crisis at Everton` and `There will be no criticism of Moyes` are just two of the gems which slip from his tongue and no doubt tonight he will propose a congratulatory vote for Kenwright, Wyness et al on the miraculous financial turnaround. Moyes will come in for special praise for gaining European `Qualification`, although if anyone dares to suggest that Rooney was manipulated out of the Club to avoid administation or that the team is a disgrace, he will be ruled out of order pdq! What a bloody farce it all is... but, with
lickspittles like this calling the shots, what
chance has the Club got? Ever. West Brom 4 Everton 0 Colm, your article on the recent Everton loss to West Brom has more than a little bit of desparation about it. Mind you, you didn't go so far as to hide behind the "Everton has more points than anyone else" all-time argument Toffee fans trot out in response to the taunt that they will always support the second team in Liverpool. Aren't you a bit embarassed at your fans' lack of knowledge of your history of 1968 or did you, like them, have to look it up when you got home? Regards Sorry, Gordon.... Somebody asked how to you judge a manager's record? The consensus was that how many matches his teams lose wasn`t a bad criterion given that Moyes sets his stall out not to concede anyway. So I promised to provide the facts before next week`s ritual moan and this morning � with a clearish head � I looked up the figures on Soccerbase. This shows Moyes's record in all matches reads: P156 W59 L64 D33 giving a losing percentage of 41%. So just where does that put him in the list of Everton bosses over the 40-odd years that most of our gang have been watching? Well, he ain`t the worst. That `honour` goes, inevitably to Mike Walker who lost 18 of his 34 matches for an average of 53%. But whether it`s fair to judge on such a short tenure � as with Howard`s third spell (P42 L18 Ave.43%) � is open to debate. However, of all the others going back to Catterick, Moyes has the worst loss record as shown below:- Smith lost 65 of 168 � Ave. 39% So it`s apologies all round to Gordon Lee �
how we`ve slated him over the years! � and a big
`losers crown` for Moyes. Think I`ve convinced
myself to jump ship lads! Time Warp! I just heard that Villarreal were playing in the Spanish version of the Conference in 1991, playing in front of 150 people... We all know the Wigan story, and the point really is, is that good management can produce results. Is it too much to ask that a club with fantastic support and history could expect to have an evolving team that plays fast, aggressive, skillful, winning football? I know it's not easy to win the Premiership, but it's not that difficult to produce a team that plays better football than we do... especially when spending the kind of money that the ludicrously over-rated David Moyes has spent! The game today is global; Arsenal are a prime example. You dont need a bunch of traditional British bulldogs playing for you... it just doesn't work. Can you imagine any team in Europe � Spanish, German, French, or whoever � actually paying a fee for Beattie or Davies? We've wasted �11M on total shite, not counting salaries. Actually, it's Moyes who has wasted the money; he has blown well over �20M on absolute rubbish, not counting the millions wasted on re-signing Kilbane, Naysmith, Pistone and Weir! We are stuck in a weird kind of "buy British' type of player time warp... effort, huff and puff, get stuck in, total bullshit! All teams now can mix it; that's a basic requirement, they also need pace, skill and ability. Moyes is, as I've said before, a PE teacher who only values or recognises effort... he's an outdated dinasour who is leading us towards extinction. Oh, and to the editor called Michael... get a
grip and stop being facetious. Your replies are
sounding like a 16-year-old Moyes groupie that
doesn't have a clue about football or what it
means to be an Evertonian. Enough already! In amongst the usual war of words between the various factions, one comment struck me. We are almost a third of the way through the season, and we�ve scored 4 goals. Considering that a quarter of that tally is a penalty and it�s a pretty damning statistic. My last memory of such a paucity of goals is during Wally's reign, the season we signed John Collins (who in part was responsible for the lack of goals when missing a penalty) � we played something like 6-7 games at home and scored only one or two goals. If memory serves me correctly (and Stattos out there feel free to correct me) we still managed to pick up some points away, before recovering sufficiently to survive another season after what was on the whole, dross. I'm now firmly in the Moyes Out Brigade � or The MOB. It's taken me some time to come to this conclusion, but it's dawned on me that it's okay for me to be part of MOB and not have the answers � I'm not paid to come up with them. I don't know who should be the next manager � but I don't think that's the pertinent issue right here, right now. Four fucking goals. (Ed, apologies in advance for a capital offence�) FOUR FUCKING GOALS!! I fully accept that the players are as culpable as Moyes in all of this, but before going too far down that road, let's remember that this is finally Moyes's team � he�s signed or re-signed all of them. Maybe it's time he took the hyphen out of re-signed� Although I live half a world away, the fact is the Asian obsession with the EPL means I get to see pretty much every game live or on delay. Those who have been bemoaning the tactics and the overall play have been spot on. It's piss poor at best. And turning to our Chairman�. Ah, fuck it;
got work to do� Fortress Sports Fund "January 2005 Residing in Monaco, Bates buys Leeds United, the club's debts having been reduced from �103m to �30m. Leeds is now owned by a trust based in Geneva, the Fortress Sports Fund. Its owners are anonymous."Not sure if everyone else knows this, but it was a surprise to me. No wonder it all went quiet about their Money coming to Everton. David Haimes (24/11/05) Apparently the article is incorrect. Leeds are owned by the "Foundation Sports Fund" but, seeing as they're Geneva-based, it wouldn't surprise me if there is a very strong link with Chris Samuelson and the Fortress Sports Fund. � Lyndon
Scoring Average Racing Santander 0.5 goals per game Let it be known that Strasbourg have not won a game so far and are basically relegation favourites in France. Frightening! Where are the goals going to
come from? You Know Your In Trouble When..... Colm's article made me realise something. I
went to see that West Brom game when Rooney
(spit) skinned out. It was at the time of my
18th (yesterday I turned 21) � three years ago.
Three years on, if we made a graph showing our
ups and downs, it would be as erratic as George
Best's heart monitor. We were shit then, we are
shit now. Three years on Moyes has only
stablised this club. Nil satis etc..... Nil satis nisi OPTIMISM, I say! Worst Ever Everton team..... Paul Gerrard; Sends a shiver down the spine just thinking
of it. 'Mailbaggers'. It seems a Sky thing to me, like 'bouncebackability'. Maybe terms like 'crap football' or 'no tactics' are more understandable to non-'mailbaggers'. These next words are real. Kilbane - Beattie - Bent - MacFadden - ... Or, try this: Give contracts to injured or old finished players. What I'm trying to say is ----- WAKE UP! WE
ARE SHITE, WE HAVE NO HOPE WITH THESE TACTICS
AND THE MAN WHO INSTRUCTS THE TEAM TO PLAY THAT
WAY. WHAT IS MORE WORRYING? THE THOUGHT THAT
THEY CANNOT PLAY ANYWAY. Ride the Donkeys I'm so low I don't care anymore Not just Everton fans � the whole of Britain
knew we needed to sign a striker. Fair enough,
he wanted to give Beattie a chance... but we
still need someone to play up front with him. At
Spurs this season, when Mido scored, I actually
cried because I thought that was it: we're going
down. It suddenly became a reality because there
is no passion whatsoever in this team. But I am
trying my best not to care at the moment and do
my college work because let's face it they don't
give a fuck about us! Wage Structure You Know You�re in Trouble when� continued... Colm noted elsewhere that last week's Irish
Lotto had the Lost numbers with the last one
reversed. I am sure it is a sign that we can
reverse the 2002-03 barcodes scoreline and
subsequent bad-run of results ;-) Stranger
things are happening... Fun to Watch When I saw Earnshaw slot home the 4th goal last weekend the thought that immediately came to mind was which Everton striker would have converted that chance with such ease? I think we need a midfield
hardman/ballwinner. Cahill fulfils this role to
an extent and so does Neville. I am hoping that
Neville can come back into the midfield, fulfil
this role and allow Arteta, Davies and Van der
Meyde room to play. Toffee TV? If you thought the season to date was depressing.. We cannot survive this season and I would suggest that you all avail yourselves of the 9/1 currently avaialable at Ladbrokes for us to go down. A message to all of the IMWT brigade - you are not in the real world. Moyes will take us down on past form... but in your views, he will go on to inspire us to FA Cup victory and 6th place in the league. The players are gutless and they preform increasingly like a Division 2 team. IMWT? ... not I! Worst ever Everton team Richard Wright; Mark Hottiger, Carl Tiler, Glen Keeley, Kenny Sansom; Gareth Farrelly, Claus Thomsen, Kevin Kilbane; Ibrahima Bakayoko, Mick Ferguson, Bernie Wright. Subs, David Lawson (Goalie); Tony Thomas, Danny Williamson, Brett Angel and last but not least James 'SuperBeats' Beattie! I feel this team would offer just the right balance of a complete lack of pace, creativity and technique. My captain would be Kevin Kilbane cos he would set the perfect example of a totally talentless footballer. Any other all time worst Everton sides that people can come up with would be welcome. ps: Richard Dodd's 'things can only get
better' fantasy, and defence of all things David
Moyes was surely a wind up? The scary thing is
that the only other Evertonian who feels the
same way is the bullshitting luvvie who runs our
club. A Simple Plan If the club really thinks that sending Bent, Beattie, Weir, or whoever to face the press with their semi-literate clich�s equals good PR, then is it any wonder that we're all so annoyed with the way we're patronised?! Bent's recent statement on the Echo's site was a new low, and only made this bluenose's day worse. Gag these dickheads now! Untouchable Moyes Judgement Sunday (continued...) Martyn; Hibbert, Yobo, Kr�ldrup, Valente; Neville; Arteta, Davies, Cahill, Van der Meyde; Beattie. It will be interesting to see how close he gets to that although I suspect he will find yet another reason to overlook Kroldrup! Certainly, we are now at the stage when we
can make a balanced judgement and whatever my
reservations about Moyes, I do hope it will turn
out to be a positive one. Goodison Dark "The only fleeting moment of compensation on a freezing cold Saturday evening in Birmingham, queuing to be frisked by West Brom stewards before entry into the �30-a-head pen behind the goal, was a brief and enjoyable banter with one of my legendary heroes, Brian Labone. References to his tussles with Jeff Astle and our 6-2 win at the Hawthornes in �68, are food and drink to the blue army that travel outside of the comfort zone of Directors Boxes. "The fact that the first goal ought not to have come from a penalty was as irrelevant to our players' abysmal performance as Labone�s presence in the away pen is crucially relevant to locating where the heart of our club beats loudest. "I suggest the manager and his players get
together to write a �never again will we let
that happen� letter to the fans before the
Newcastle game and then do everything to try to
match the efforts and passion of supporters and
ex-players like Labone, who genuinely and in the
most adverse of circumstances sacrifice so much
in our collective dream-world of Nil Satis
Nisi Optimum." Don't get shirty! Judgement Sunday Valente is back to full fitness allowing Neville to boss the midfield and, after last week`s debacle, there can surely be no longer a reason to delay the debut of �5M Per Kr�ldrup. Cahill should be over his jet-lag, Beattie and Van der Meyde have had the run of games they needed, and Davies must by now have `settled in`. So the stage is set for `Judgement Sunday.` A day to determine whether Moyes`s best are good enough; whether we have cause to believe the nightmare is over... or whether we`re in for a white-knuckle ride all the way 'til May. Come on you Blues! He told us so! Bucking the trend... I'm just wondering if this is a thing unique
to this site, because most fans I talk to would
appear to still be behind David Moyes, and
unflinchingly so. At the end of the day he is
not going anywhere, because he has the support
of the directors and the majority of the fans,
even if lots of people seem to want him out on
this site. How do you title this? I remember Jimmy Husband and Johnny Morrisey out on the wings. I remember Gordon West, Tommy Wright, Ray Wilson. Brian Labone, Harvey Kendall Ball, Big Joe, others I don't, from that era. I remember Dai Davies, Dave Clements, Mick Pejic, Jim Pearson, Mick Lyons Martin Dobson, The Newtons, Big Bad Bob and Dunc (of the time), some good, some awful, some great. I remember Biley, Angell and all of the crap between 1960 and 19/11/2005 and I remember ALL of those managers in charge. I have seen the best and the worst of Everton sides over the past 45yrs. I thought that I had seen the worst, firstly under Gordon Lee, then Mike Walker, then Walter Smith. I was wrong. David Moyes is the worst manager Everton Football Club have employed since 1960. I have listened to all sides over the past few weeks, but those arguments pale into insignificance. Evertonians have been riding on the back of finishing 4th last season. Good, Great, Fantastic, Superb, ....whatever. Take a look from January 05 onwards. We are in the middle/beginning/end of our worst set of results since Mike Walker. We have scored fewer goals since MY records have began. Why are we still singing Moyes praises? He's got red hair.....so what...his record is shite. WE HAVE SCORED 4 FUCKING GOALS SINCE AUGUST!!!!!!!! (KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK -----HELLO ----- ANYONE THERE???) When do we call it a day? As a good Catholic lad, I hope Moyes goes to Rangers. Not only will he have left here, he will also make Rangers a boring, non-scoring crap team also! NIL SATIS NISI OPTIMUM Steve McMahon.... Punts Shambles..... No passion, no commitment, no creativity. I recognise that we are never going to play 'total' football, but simple pass-and-move stuff seems far to advanced for our current squad (Arteta excluded), and if lacking in quality, I expect 100% commitment and effort, and all to often this season I have seen nothing. A fucking disgrace. I don't want to hear David Weir 'apoligising' yet again, just get out on the fucking pitch and do it!!!! (well not Weir � he should be dropped). We are one third of the way through the
season and we have scored 4 goals for Christ's
sake! Some of the players need a wake up call,
they should put up the league table in training
everyday, and if the players don't like it, well
only they can do anything about it. It's time to
start producing something, before it's to late.
What did I do? Yes Mr Dodds, I did see your letter soon after the final whistle on Saturday. In fact it was the absence of any letters with a similar opinion which prompted me to ask my question to ToffeeWeb. I was merely curious to see whether many people had come out to support the manager after the dismal result on Saturday. I was just trying to see if the guys at ToffeWeb had printed all the submissions that had come in � or just the ones that suited them. I was quite satisfied with Lyndon�s answer. Moreover, you obviously failed to read the bit in my honest, short question that read, 'An honest question, I'm not trying to make a point - just genuinely curious'. Sometimes, you have to take things at face value � there was no hidden agenda. As for my point of view Mr Dodds, I am unsure as to quite what I think - as are a lot of Evertonians right now. Therefore for you to suggest that I was only reading letters which 'conform to my point of view' is ridiculous � I�m still don�t know what my point of view is. In my humble opinion, both camps seem to have a number of valid arguments. I can accept that if I knew the answers, I�d be running my own football team! Instead I am just another faceless mug who forks out his �400 a year! We should be sticking together � debate is fine, but at least be sure that the person you are dragging into your little war is up for the fight. IMWT? I HONESTLY just don�t know. Not quick enough on his pins I think Noleen's right, but there's no guarantee that if the bottom portion of Zinedine's legs are amputated he'll markedly improve as a footballer. Only pessimists are now thinking 'he couldnt get any worse'. At least Kilbane tries. Next week: "maybe
Beattie's waist is too round for this club?" Oh my God � I don't like Moyes!
Chris Wright, Chester (21/11/05)
Where`s the evidence? Can someone tell me, please, what skill this man has shown in team selection, tactics and substitutions for if there is rhyme or reason behind most of his decisions they are certainly beyond me. Then we are told he`s a great motivator, able to get players to perform at their absolute peak. Well,if that`s the truth, some of them must be starting from a pretty low base! So what else has he got going for him? I put it to you, m`lud, that Moyes is an
empty vessel who secured a mega contract from a
naive chairman on the strength of one
half-season of good fortune. The price Everton
will pay for sticking with him will dwarf any
severence payment to get rid. Cue for the next
Epistle from Rob Fox! Just a thought. Champions League Three million reasons Time's Up. I know there are plenty of fans out there who would disagree... but they can't keep going back to what he did last season: that's in the past. He has to be judged on the present � and that is simply not good enough for Everton Football Club. You can see where I'm going with this. If you look at the fixtures coming up, can you see where the next points are coming from? Because I can't. I can see it getting to the point were 4 or 5
teams are stuck down the bottom way behind
everybody else and fighting for survival, and
Everton being one of them. So maybe it is time
for a change to freshen things up; pat Davey on
the back and wish him all the best on his way
out. I know it's a big ask,but why not try
Hitzfeld. Big club? As good as we are at supporting the team through thin and thin, we repeatedly belittle ourselves with ridiculous behaviour. Think back... Any one of a hundred boardroom struggles, Kendall's sacking, Johnson, Gregg, Samuelson, super-dooper new ground, ticket fiascos, every player bought for too much (unfit) and every one sold for too little (on hire-purchase), etc, etc. You get the drift. And a large section of the fans are culpable also. The Rooney hate campaign is stupid and self-defeating and believe me, is held up to ridicule by most even-minded football fans. Of course he could have parted with more gratitude, but he was, and still is, a kid for Christ's sake. We should be celebrating the fact that potentially the world's best player came from our ranks, not throwing phones at him and spray-painting his house. It's an embarrassment every time we play Man Utd to see the twisted faces of hate on the terraces. (He left for a bigger club and better career prospects: get over it.) Oh, and by the way, booing your own player will not make him play better, even if it does satisfy some primeval urge, home-crowd take note. We are rapidly going down the pan on the
pitch; at least we could show a bit more dignity
and class off it. In short, we are acting like a
'small club' would do. Pass Forwards (and PS Kilbane's rubbish) Wake Up!!! Kevin Kilbane is a sorry excuse for a footballer. Maybe his legs are too long for his body? When last did he actually pass the ball to an Everton player??? I feel sorry for Hibbert. He made one little tackle which cost the team when normally he is quite reliable. Granted, he's not the most skilfull or the fastest, but he IS reliable. As for Beattie - get over yourself! You'll never make England team again and you're a waste of good blue money. By now, you should have shown some punch! Bent is never going to be a striker who scores, Arteta had a bad day at the office but I still rate him. The management at Everton had better take a
serious look at themselves and the players they
choose to employ. Stuff being nice and loyal at
this stage. None of that's going to pay the
rent! Moyes might have been the right man to
lead us out of the Walter Smith era, but he is
not the man to take us into the next. I say get
Guus Hiddink!!!! Look what he did at South
Korea, PSV (twice over) and now Aussie. Please
don't even talk to me about British coaches � we
need some European input at Everton! Steve McMahon It's the comedians! Quite possibly... Leeds United scored 4 times in just over 15 minutes this weekend. That is the same as we've fucking disgraceful. On that stat alone, most managers would have been axed by now. He has no clue about how to win a game. His stall is set out the same every game. Stop the opposition from scoring and try and sneak one ourselves. It doesn't work on either front: we can't score � and we cant stop others from scoring against us. Shockingly, there are still the band of Moyes supporters who I am certain are keeping this man in a job. The old "I'll never walk away from the job" is very admirable � if there was an iota of a chance of him turning this situation around he'd have a point. We are poor. Beattie was the biggest waste of
�6 million notes I have ever seen. We have a �5M
centre half who has yet to play amidst rumours
of his playing abilities. The sticking point
here is who will replace Moyes? What is Doctor
Josef Venglos up to these days? I was there! Of course this season has been disappointing, but only because our asperations were raised so high following the achievements of the previous year. Surely I don`t have to remind anyone that the architect of that achievement was DAVEY MOYES and that was recognised not only by all but the perpetual moaners for whom Mailbag acts as a magnet but also his fellow managers who, I think you will agree, are nobody`s fools! Yes,we should have made more progress in Europe, but both competitions came too early for us with a raft of new signings settling in and an injury list of ridiculous proportions. The twisted decision of a certain world-famous referee also had something to do with it, I seem to remember! It is certainly true that several of the Manager`s signings have still to do themselves justice but who would dare to say that any of them are not far better than those they replaced? No, Beattie has not yet earned his corn but injuries have restricted both his appearances and mobility and given a good run his established class as a striker will begin to pay off. And what of our league position? Disappointing again to be in the bottom third but take a good look at the table. In truth, we are just TWO bloody points below par (points gained to games played) and if we had already played and won our game in hand we would be in fourteenth position!With no less than 26 games to go, do you not think it`s being stupidly premature and negative to portray the image that we are already doomed? So please, all Evertonians, get a sense of
proportion, keep faith in the general who has
shown he can win the battles and who will, I am
positive, also win the war against any fear of
relegation. COYB! Embarrassments I think we can all agree that Moyes is going
to be a good manager and the players we have in
the (small) squad are of the highest quality we
have seen at Everton for a long time. Although
Champions League qualification was a high point,
one thing to remember is that some of the most
embarrassing moments in our history have come in
the last couple of years under Moyes:
Shrewsbury, Arsenal 7-0, Bucharest, 39 points
surival, and now 4-0 Albion. The team under this
leadership are adding up more negative points
than highs at the moment and it is becoming more
and more difficult to remain positive. Enough is enough?!
Having thought about each of these points it
is easy to conclude that, like I've said
previously, Moyes's time is up. I honestly
believe that we have a pretty decent bunch of
players - the best we have had in a decade for
sure - but they are being forced into remission
by the negativity of Moyes and his na�vity. Yes,
Moyes led us to 4th in the legue last season,
but last season is over, it has no bearing on
our future. The Pro-Moyes brigade are quick to
throw last seasons aceivements in our faces, but
why do they never mention "the forgotten season"
of 03/04 when Moyes guided us to our worst ever
points total? Blind support will get us nowhere.
Constructive criticism and changes will. Independent assessment of the accounts You say that "Joe's opinion is highly valued
but he is not privy to 100% of the information
available to the club itself". Was he asked to
perform this task in previous years and if so
how did he do (with the benefit of hindsight)?
Do we have any documentary evidence? Were there any letters to the Mailbag.... An honest question, I'm not trying to make a point - just genuinely curious! And yes, yesterday - a disgrace. Blown chances He has blown the Rooney money as well as blowing the chance our fluke season last year gave us. We are now in a worse mess, with terrible, unsellable, immovable players than at any other time in our history. As an aside, wasn't Moyes supposed to be obsessed about conditioning of players? Well I've never seen such a bunch of unfit, overweight players in my life. When Rooney was with us he was too fat, 3 months at Man U and he was much leaner and fitter. Beattie is STILL clearly overweight, your upper body should'nt jiggle if your an athlete, its an absolute disgrace. VdM is also too fat and most of the others in the team dont have that hard, toned look that you get with players in other teams. Even Steve Watson, the incredible sweating man, looked leaner and fitter yesterday after a few months at West Brom! Moyes is pathetic. If he doesn't go by
Christmas we will get relegated and the utter
dross we have playing for us won't get us back
up for years to come. Blues in a Brown habit Being an Evertonian in London attracts a mixture of mirth, apathy and occassional sympathy from supporters of the Capital's clubs. Your website and the contents of its mailbag therefore eases some of the pain by allowing us to share in the collective anguish felt by us all last night when the team served up, for me, the worst pile of shite so far this season. That is saying something given the plentiful supply of the brown stuff offered by the men in blue. I cannot remember the side being so abjectly humiliated by another team equally as bad. Our other crushings in the recent past have come against confident teams with the quality to expose our glaring weaknesses. I was raging after the 7-0 loss to Arsenal but last night, much like the team, I felt all emotion drain away as the Blues hoisted the white flag shortly after the break. Our best players were the non-playing subs. I fear Moyes has completely lost the ability
to influence the team during games: gone is fire
and brimstone which helped us salvage some pride
against United when we were 3-0 down at
half-time. The worst of the performances are now
saved for the second period. Where the side was
once fit, hungry and determined during the
closing stages of matches, it is now complacent,
anaemic and apathetic. The qualities instilled
by Moyes in the team which made him so admired
in the first place are no longer in evidence.
What now, Davey? No passion. Having read the latest comments posted on here my mind is beginning to change to 'sacking David Moyes'. Our calendar record as shown previously, is shocking and results and statistics don�t lie, but having said all this, it is down to the 11 players on the pitch to go and produce and decent performance in front 40,000 fans who save their hard earned money to support the team they love. They are just not doing it!!! There is no pride, passion, commitment, endeavour, style or flair what so ever and that is what pisses me off the most, more than anything else. The manager can only teach them so much, tell, direct and motivate them to a certain point and the players must do the rest. We do have some quality players in the side, Yobo, Neville, Arteta, AVDM, Cahill and Beattie!!!! (despite what you say) but we do have some shit and I mean proper shit players who just don�t cut it. (Weir, Kilbane, Bent, Davies, McFadden, Naysmith. What I�m trying to say is that if the results
do continue he WILL get the sack or he WILL
resign BUT it is the players themselves who
fucking need to wake up and realise that they
are in a privileged position and need to start
performing!!!! There are 2 players in the side
at the moment that plays with the qualities that
are needed and that are Yobo and Neville. Yet another defender! Just heard from my brother-in-law, who plays for Hearts, that his team`s centre half, Andy Webster, is all set up to join Everton in the New Year window. He reckons he`s a cracking player who Moyes has targetted because of on-going concerns about Kr�ldrup`s pelvic condition. My only question is whether we need any more defenders?Last night`s game showed up very clearly our deficiencies in midfield with Arteta and Davies not physically strong enough against their very competitive Japanese player, Inamoto. And why can`t anyone take a corner legally - it beggars belief! Cahill was obviously missed but whoever said `never sign Australians` was right because they spend their lives in bloody aeroplanes. Even if we sign Keane and Ashton at Christmas, if they get no better service than the present `strikers`, we shall never score the goals we need to be safe. What a bloody mess! Moyes & Beattie There should now be no debate about whether the manager should go or not. The debate should be who we can get to sort out the mess we are in. Moyes should go and take the nuisance Beattie with him. How long have we got to put up with humiliating performance after humiliating performance before Moyes supporters and Bill Kenwright realise this club is heading into the Championship? If Moyes is still here in January, we will
have to go through the pathetic nonsense of
watching player after player refuse to come to
Goodison, while Moyes's 'on-field tactics' just
get worse. A Normal Training Session? I've been scratching my head watching the game tonight (the abysmal WBA game) thinking "what the hell do these guys do in training?" - I reckon it goes something like this... Monday Morning Moyes: "OK, lads I felt some of you faded in the last game so we are going to work on fitness this week." Team:*collective sigh* Moyes: "50 laps round the pitch lads, and then i'll see you tomorrow" Off the players trot Tuesday Morning Day off Wednesday morning Moyes:" OK lads, seeing as you had a day off yestereday I think we should work on fitness. 50 laps round the pitch please. see you all tomorrow." Off Moyes trots. Players start round the pitch. Thursday morning Moyes:"OK lads, big game this week, against a physical side. I have a master plan of closing them down and making sure they don't get time on the ball, so as a special treat we are going to do 60 laps today. Off you go" Moyes walks off, head down, thinking about the coming game Friday Morning Beattie: "Boss, before we start can I just say, I'm very very fit now. Can we work on ball control, shooting, set pieces & defending please? You know like other teams do ... perhaps even passing?" Moyes starts chuckling: "Who you kidding Beatts>? Fitness is the key, put that ball down and don't touch it again until we kick off tomorrow. Off you go lads, just 40 laps today coz of the game tomorrow. Saturday morning Moyes: "OK lads, a bit of light work this morning before this afternoon's game, you know ball control and passing." All players look at Moyes amazed. Beatts: "You sure, Boss? Nice one!" Moyes laughs his head off: "Yeah right, lads. I was joking, You know better than that. Off you go. 25 laps, please, and I'll see you at 2.45 for the team talk". Sunday Morning Moyes:"OK lads, we was crap again yesterday, we need a clear the air team talk." Weir: "Yeah, good idea boss. I think we should work on fitness then all our problems will be behind us." Moyes: "You are the best, Davey, great idea. Will see you tomorrow for fitness training lads". End of meeting Monday morning .... rinse and repeat. Kilbane This man is not good enough, so why does
Moyes keep playing him? Where are the young lads
in the reserves? I KNOW there are better
performers in the reserves so why not give them
a chance on the big stage? I remember this young
lad who was brought in for a friendly, no-one
knew much about him until that game; his name
was Steve McMahon. So give the reserves a
chance; they cannot be any worse than Kevin
Kilbane. A Magic Spell? Old Joe Mercer used to say that supporters only judged managers on the result of the last game. I plead not guilty on that score but I do think a manager can be fairly judged on the results of his last forty or so matches! Moyes's record over that time has been well chronicled here and everyone must know that it makes far from healthy reading. His bewilderingly strange iconic status with Evertonians - many of them friends of mine - seems to be based on the early improvement we saw after he replaced Walter Smith and his gut-wrenching pronouncement that he was joining `The People`s Club.` Then, last season`s fourth position appears to have seen him exulted to the permanent status of an `all-time great`. After the ignominy of last night`s defeat, I retired in search of sustenance to the Royal Oak on the road into Brum. There I met up with a group of Evertonians, all slagging off the players, Kenwright and Wyness but seeming to absolve `The Moyesiah` of any culpability. Now I`ve been in this situation before so my four-penneth was tentative and along the lines of `Do you think we`ve spent the Rooney money wisely?` and `Why have we signed/re-signed so many serially injured players?` Getting brave, I ventured onto formations, tactics and substitutions and only then,having solicited some doubts that the Manager can actually walk on water, did I venture to ask, `Is it time for a change?` At that seemingly sensible question, the third world war broke out with words like `traitorous` and `negativity` probably the most polite. The plaintiff became the defendant in a trice as I was told in no uncertain terms that Moyes is still the best young manager in the game - the Manager of the Year noless! That there is absolutely no-one out there who could do better; that it`s about time the players got their arses into gear and then finally to go and join the gob-shites on the Kop! Needless to say, I exited swiftly as I began to realise that `We love you Davey, we do` was not being sung entirely for my benefit! Can somebody please explain what magic spell
our Manager has cast over the great majority of
our faith? I suspect even the Archbishop of
Canterbury would be interested to know his
secret! Moyes Out! Manchester City 5 - 1, Arsenal 7-0, Bucharest 5-1, West Brom 4-0. These are just a few of the most embarrassing results I can remember in recent times all under David Moyes. For the last two I have watched the games on TV in a room full of red gobshites who never go the match, so its fair to say my state of pissed-offness was heightened. I have finally gone against a lot of my blue friends (the Moyesiah's disciples) and started to give the Moyes Out shout, too late maybe. The fact is any manager is capable of taking this Everton side and getting a few hard earned 1-0 wins out of them, any manager could do that: fact. But I doubt it is possible to say that any manager could field an Everton side which is capable of every game, being completley turned over and embarrassed as this Moyes side is. Moyes substitutions yesterday once again made no sense to me. The load of shit that is Beattie should have been left on in place of Bent because he is more likely to score than Bent. Moyes should also grab Beattie by the neck an tell the flash twat to stop robbing the free kicks off Arteta, that's what managers are there for isn't it?! We can see that the problem is Weir, Kilbane, Davies, McFadden and Bent so why cant Moyes? Kenwright wont sack Moyes anyway so maybe
Moyes will resign. Who will replace him? I would
take George Burley right now � we need the
honeymoon results period to keep us out the
bottom three for Xmas. Roy Keane for Player-Manager? I'm not actually one of the Moyes out brigade but I thought I'd throw an off-the-wall idea into the pot for debate. Someone on here compared David Moyes to George Burley a couple of weeks back and I think that's spot on. DM is definitely a good manager and his class will tell in the long-term � at Everton or maybe elsewhere. But like George Burley at Ipswich when things started to go wrong it was hard to pull things round � the old cliche of 'losing the dressing room'. Keane would command respect from the players, would motivate them, would take no shit from prima-donnas and his name alone would be able to attract new blood in January. As I say I'm not against Moyes but I think these may be some of the problems Everton are now facing and Keane may provide a solution sufficient to keep us in the Premiership come May. He may be reluctant to come to crap like us
as a player but maybe the carrot of cutting his
managerial teeth may offer him an attractive
challenge. What do you expect? Everyone knows what our problem is: scoring goals! But what do you expect when we don't buy a striker? Moyes had 3 months to sign a striker an tried to do it on the last day, and people wonder why he gets called Dithering Dave! Robbie Keane is a brilliant player who scores goals whoever he plays for... so why wait so long to go for him? He didn't want to sign a striker because he
didn't want to be proved wrong that Beattie was
a waste of money, but if he had done something
about it we would have accepted it because we
all make mistakes. But now maybe it's too late.
Now we are stuck with 'a 20 minute player', a
'headless chicken' and a �6M flop. Where are the
goals going to come from? And remember, we have
still got to play Liverpool and Man Utd before
January! It's gunna be a long Xmas!! moyes its gone to far! i haven't missed an away game this season but i just want to say i have never been more embarrassed to be an evertonian! we were an absolute joke. thousands travelled to west brom (the midlands was the coldest in england yesterday)and the players couldn't even be bothered trying, do they really deserve to get paid this week? moyes will go soon because he can't handle
pressure he will take the easy way out and go to
rangers. there is just no loyalty in football
anymore everything is about money the only loyal
people in football are the fans!!!!!!!! Truth bites you on the backside As soon as I heard we had conceded a goal yesterday I said to my family this will be three or four nil, they all laughed and I said can any of you remember the last time Everton came back from a goal down? Can you all remember how after one goal we usually fold heads down and get tonked? An eerie silence at the end of the game then when it was four to a frankly mediocre West Brom. You can harp on as much as you like about Dermot "should have gone to Specsavers" Gallagher's decisions but they would only be one maybe two goals, they still scored two others, did Beattie cup his ears to the away supporters this week after he was beaten time after time, I bloody think not. The Brazilian national squad has used the same ethos about games since it's birth and are the most successful national side on the world stage; they dont care if anyone scores past them and to be honest their defence has always been ropey as they will just take the ball up the other end of the pitch with style and flair and score more goals than they conceded and win games. Style and flair, I'm old and lucky enough when that meant something and Everton actually had style and flair players unlike our current pub side carthorses. Mr Moyes' tactics are a naive attempt at stopping other sides scoring with no response whatsoever having gone a goal down, a tactic that simply hasn't worked for nearly a year, the players he puts faith in week in week out such as Kilbane and Beattie are simply shite, before anyone says wait until January I made a posting months ago saying who would come if we were bottom and who could we afford in a World Cup year with over-inflated agents prices? Dream on you blinkered fools. The game yesterday showed Everton and David
Moyes' lack of spine and guile, the apologies
should be to the travelling fans and home fans
that pay for this substandard mockery of
entertainment week in week out. ABYSMAL I admit there were some terrible decisions but we were woeful, nothing less ! Sure we missed Cahill, but please Kilbane can't hit a bull's arze with a shovel. I've never seen such a waste bof dspace in my life. Seriously, if we don't make some signings in
the window we are going south. Accept it! Had enough Humiliation The football we play is stunningly inept and ugly, the players he's signed or re-signed are a sick, sick joke...and yet we still have the seemingly endless supply of Evertonians supporting this fool! What more needs to be done to convince people that we are heading DOWN. My only hope is that it gets so stupidly bad that he falls on his own sword; I'm hoping that this so called man of honour does the right thing and, realising he is so far out of his depth, heads for Scotland or the lower reaches of England. He's like a f**king stupid P.E teacher...we
get a few lucky results but he won't change a
'winning' team...no I'll keep an over the hill,
slow, crap, charisma-less captain in the team,
whilst the player I paid 5 million for waits for
his chance. Just like Wenger does when Henry is
fit again!!! Could anybody be worse than Kilbane
and he's with us for 2 more years after this,
because 'crazy eyes' rates him as a footballer!!
For God's sake WAKE UP before its too late. We just didn't play I made my M.O.M. Tony Hibbert purely for the fact he seemed the only player proud of the Blue shirt. Forget the penalty that never was, that wasn't the reason for the defeat. WE JUST DIDN'T PLAY. Next week will be another different game and
maybe a different display but as it's at home we
need to win it because many more of todays
performances and we will be right in it. Gutted
at the moment but will be there next Sunday
willing them on. UP THE BLUES I almost wasn't going to write this. We are just so fucked up! Another defeat, this time at the hands of WBA. For all of us whom have watch the match, would have agree with me, we are just so fucked up!!! This reminds me of Walter Smith's last match, FA cup 3-0 defeat to Boro. That game, after Boro scored, the whole game we were just playing for the whistle to go, get the hell off the field, no level of commitment, no desire to win at all.... I'm not a glory hunter, neither am I asking for the sky; every team loses, the important thing is, the manner that we lost the game. There are so many occasions where we lost a match but we so gallantly (4-3 to Man Utd 02/03, 4-3 to Arsenal same year, 2-1 to Newcastle, and more recently, the defeats to Chelsea last season). That is what made us so proud to wear our blue jerseys; we are not the big guns in England, but a team that people respect beause of our hunger, determinaion, workrate.... this season, we lost them all.. David Moyes: a fluke season does not mean that lady luck would be with us forever, his persistence to play ultra-defensive football has made us the joke of the league � 4 goals in 12 games? Even Swindon Town did better in 93/94... Unless he understands the fact that to win a game, you need a goal, he should leave before he brings us down this season... Nigel Martyn: Good talent for a 39-year-old, cannot really blame him for the fall our team, has been a great servant since joining us, but how much longer can we depend on him? Tony Hibbert: Very hard woking full back, good tackler, but unbelievably bad passer of the ball! The moment he gets he ball, he whacks it up hoping for a defensive mistake from the other side. Hibbo, it's just not working... Not a good crosser, and doesn't offer support on the overlap often enough... Phil Neville: Perhaps one of the only few players wearing the shirt with pride, always wanting to bring the team forward, but somehow, the rest just prefer not to join in the attack. Good leadership, hard-working, model professional, our next captian without a doubt... That is if can we stay in the league to see that day.... Joseph Yobo: another quality player we have, classy defender, who has become more mature and not so error prone, but to be fair to him, Stubbs was full of errors as well, if you can recall... The only diffence being when Yobo makes a mistake, it results in a goal; Stubbs's mistakes didn't... Overall, our only and most decent centre-back... Another one we must keep at all cost. David Weir: age is certianly catching up on him, good reader of the game, but no pace at all... Clueless and helpless when marking pacy players like Robben and Henry.. time is really up for Weir to go, old is not gold in fooball. Andy van der Meyde: good crosser, holds on to the ball well, our only creative player, our season and premiership status depends alot on him. Where are we gonna end up in May? He is a big factor. Important thing now is for AvdM to get it, lose a few pounds, and maybe things can change. Mikel Arteta: Must be feeling frustated every time he drives forward, only to realise no teamates are around to support him. To fully use him, we must offer support, back up his runs and offer him options inside the box, otherwise, even David Beckham's crossing ability is of no use at all... Simon Davies: Very disapointing player, not a shadow of what made him the player he was at Spurs: poor passing, lousy crossing, unable to mark, tackle, not supporting attacks; headless chicken roaming around not knowing what to do at all... Kevin Kilbane: The only reason I can think of why this man is still a EPL player is because he is in Everton! our worst player for as long as i can remember, lazy, slack, can't dribble, can't pass (the backpass to Earnshaw, need i say more?), just a player that screws our team up, please, get RID OF KEVIN KILBANE!!! James Beattie: i used to be a big fan of beattie, i even had a jersey on his name the second day we sign him, but not anymore, gone were the days where we can see a James Beattie scoring for fun, left foot, right leg, anywhere. What we have now is an unfit, fat, slow, unconfident beattie whom tries so hard but loses himself as a player he was. All we can hope now is he does deliver, 10 league goals for his season would be a massive return, and hopefully gets himself shaped up and fit, then maybe we can keep him for another year or two... Marcus Bent: a player we can love and hate. Love, for his determination, workrate, heart and hunger everytime he goes on the pitch. hate, for is unbelievable poor ball control, amatuer shooting and ability to hold up balls. How many times had we seen him gets the ball, loses it the less than a second? Countless... just a back up player at most, never should be our first choice striker... I love my Everton like everyone of you guys,
it really breaks my heart to see us becoming
like that, i want my team to progess, like i
say, we don't have to win the league (we can't
anyway), i just hope to see a fighting everton
which never gives up no matter how bad th
situation is, that was what made us so special,
isn't it? Cheated First he gives a penalty which never was, then totally ignores their goalie handling outside the area. On such decisions are games decided. To be cheated twice totally knocked the stuffing out of our lads who,up to that first decision, were putting up a spirited performance. So please all true Blues keep the
faith-remember we`ve still gained seven points
from the last four matches-and that ain`t
relegation form. IMWT! Oh, My God. 4-0! to Arsenal? , Man Utd? even Liverpool? No, 4-0 to West Brom! It's beyond my ken. The revival(Ha! Ha! Ha!)? Put into it's true perspective. We last scored two goals in a game when we lost to Bolton at the end of last season, we last scored two goals and WON when we beat Newcastle on 7th May. We last scored four goals on April 10th and then we beat the mighty Crystal Palace. To be brutally honest, after watching that, I simply despair. Fifty plus years and that was there along with our defeat by Arsenal in the late fifties by 6-1, by two defeats by Liverpool by 5-0 (and by last season's 7-0 by Arsenal) but I was present at the other disasters. I even remember the Everton defeat at Spurs by 10-4, but spurs were , at least, starting a great era. I don't think West Brom are, despite the presence of such luminaries as Watson and Campbell. Give me a clue Mr. Moyes! Please, go to Rangers. Or Q.P.R. or even Stafford Rangers. This is not acceptable. We are the "School of Science", "Nil Satis Nisi Optimum" etc.. The club of Dean , Young, Ratcliffe and Rooney. Please,this is totally unacceptable, and
before one of your editors tells me that I have
to live in the present, let me remind you, this
is Everton, the proudest name in the history of
World Club football. Europe here we come To everyone who has "crowed" about the wonderful Everton revival please think again. We were shocking again today, 4 nil to Albion!!!!!!!!!!!!! Good God we never ever looked like scoring and the play was shite!!!! I'm off out on the piss thank god, but when i wake up tomorrow we will still be crap but im sure "more work on the training ground" will sort it. Moyesey looks furious after the game. Well Davey, im not too happy either What the hell happened? Moyes must go now After tonights load of shite no one now can defend Moyes.We our heading out of the top flight with this fool in charge. Being out played by West Brom is bad enough but watching the club disintergrate week by week is far more worrying. It is now time for Bungalow Bill to act.How can this situation be allowed to continue. Get rid off Moyes before it's to late. This site said last week it was utter nonsense to suggest our season was over all ready. Well it looks over to me unless you consider going down an achievement The whole club is being destroyed and no one is prepared to do anything about it.I bet there are still foolish people out there backing Moyes even now. Dont blame the players its not there fault they are not good enough for the premier league. Any one can see how sub standard they are.Who was it that signed them,Moyes so blame him. We have no tactics other than hit and hope.No players who can score goals.No one to lead out on the pitch and no one capable of changing a game but still we persist with the same flawed game plan every week. Any one thinking that there are worse teams than us in the league so we will stay up think again.Only sunderland look worse than Everton at the moment. I have been accused of negativity recently on this site,can any one blame me now.If Moyes stays after this shambles then get ready for a taste of coca cola. Moyes out or we go down its as simple as
that. False Dawn Just switched off the game at 3-0 down. A wretched performance from a wretched team. Those people who claimed we had turned the corner after two narrow unconvincing wins are the same apologists who tell us what a great manager Moyes is. He isn't, he is a man who is living off the back of half a good season. I wanted to urge caution about our so-called revival before todays shambles but I knew that the 'Moyes Mafia' would shout me down. The reality is that a fellow struggling team
has taken the piss out of us today. We will be
in a relegation battle this season and I would
be more than happy to see Moyes slouch off to
Rangers. Keano? The cretin's club Dave Charles - are you for real? Do you actually believe Rooney, Kenright & Co sit around in a cave trying to hatch dastardly plans to 'do' over Everton? One of the qualities that many Evertonians pride themselves upon is that although we may not have all the trappings and trophies of the big 3, nor the money & media affection lavished upon the geordies, kopites or the boro we like to think that we have a bit about ourselves. IE that we're no mugs and won't be taken in by some of the sh!te that other supporters stand (Portsmouth fans cheering like crazed cultists when Arsenal beat them at home for example). But anyway Dave I guess your reaction (and to
be fair to you the reaction of many other
mailbaggers)to what ever rubbish the tabloids
spew shows that that perception of ourselves is
as realistic as the rubbish you've been
spouting. Congratulations Tim! Is Rooney forgiven now. Not by me he isn't. I don't care if he asks about Everton results. Is he shite a Blue at heart. He's a typical mercenary footballer who fucked his club off. His head was easily turned in other directions and he gave no thanks to the club that got him on his way. He certainly enjoyed horseheads goal in the first game of the season. The reaction and photos of the fans showed me he will never be forgiven. Some Blue he is and his mate Stubbs. Did Kenwright ask Stubbs to smuggle him out of Bellfield and take him to Old Trafford.....I don't think so. As for 'THE TRUTH'. Well what is the truth. After a rumour of a �50k backhander, that 'TRUTH' soon went quiet. Don't blame Kenwright at every opportunity. He wanted him to stay like the rest of us but the player himself asked to leave. I will never believe players who say they love our club, especially the local ones. MacMahon, Jeffers, Rooney and Stubbs to an extent have all professed their love of this club and all shaffted it when they didn't get their own way. Rush, Fowler, MacManaman, Owen and Carragher all get stick about being young Blues. They chose to go to Liverpool because the Everton scouting system allowed them to slip through the net. I once heard Carragher waited and waited for Everton to make a move but Everton said no. Now I believe a young JP Kissock is our next hope. I won't build my hopes on a player ever again. I hope he does well for us and gives us a chance. Unlike one or two others. I can smell the agent now. Deja vue Mark 2 and there's more.... Deja Vu Indigestion in the Premier league This very day, one of my own sons and his mates have headed for Stadium Australia in Sydney for this country's biggest football game in years - the second leg World Cup eliminator against Uruguay. He has paid FAR, FAR less than a base ticket for a club game in England, for a prime seat at a huge occasion. From where I sit here, I find it absolutely amazing that ANY major football competition anywhere can operate without a salary cap. Colm made sensible comments about the NFL. The same could be said of the Australian Rules [AFL] and Rugby League {ARL] competitions in this country. Both provide superb-standard games between very well-matched sides. There is rarely much between all but the bottom two or three clubs. Last season, EVERY team was within four wins of the top way past mid-season. A side that wins the competition in successive seasons is an absolute rarity and is seen as very much the exception and an all-time champion outfit. This season's NRL, for example, saw the previous year's top two teams finish in the bottom half. The winner this year finished in the bottom half the year before. Almost nobody expects them to win again next season. Most sports-minded people I know here have
always seen 'UK soccer' as great sport. It's
been very popular TV fare... until now.
Increasingly, I am hearing comments like 'a
farce', 'just about money' and 'are they
football clubs or clothing retailers?'. Debt and
living beyond your means has become a societal
evil everywhere. It can't go on forever.
Eventually, there will be 'tears before
bedtime'. The Premier League should reform
itself now before greed and gorging induce the
inevitable day of reckoning. We all have to pay
for our self-indulgence one day. Respect Rooney Moyes to Rangers The Rooney & Moyes Show Speaking of nads, and so is Moyesey. Top
Manager who is building the team nicely, albeit
it with a few frustrating moments along the way,
but for him too! We are 3 or 4 quality players
off a very good side and Moyes will get us
there. We just gotta be patient. I dont doubt
the man. Fingers crossed The media are at it again Rooney always welcome at his spiritual home! I genuinely think he is a Blue for life and
should be welcomed back as such every time he
plays at Goodison Park. I sill don't believe he
was the main motivator behind his move.....the
finger of suspicion on that count points firmly
in the direction of Bankrupt Bill. Ian Burns Earth calling Sparke Okay we are definetly not a big five club any more but we are certainly in the top ten. Our average attendance is seventh in the list so we must be the seventh biggest club. What I want is the Board and Management to act as if we are. This year we have spent more money than Man Utd on players but we seem to be going backwards. To be happy with our current situation Kev sets his standards for our club a lot lower than me. Our season is over already and it's only early November but Kev thinks we should be jumping through hoops. According to him we are improving. I am sorry Kev but I just don't see it. Clubs that for years we have regarded as Mickey Mouse are starting to pull away from Mighty Everton both on and off the field. Clubs like Charlton Bolton, Middlesbrough, and even little old Wigan from a rugby town are playing in brand new stadiums. They are playing football that makes us look like Graham Taylor's Watford and it's to much to take for most of us but Kev's happy with it. It hurts me to see us in the shit once again and I can't take any positives out of the past twelve months. We were dreaming of playing the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid a few months ago; now instead we are keeping an eye on West Brom's and Sunderland's results; some improvement that is, Kev! I don't have any idea what we as a club can do to address this slide into the widerness. One thing is for sure though: playing football the Davey Moyes style will get us nowhere. It has as much appeal as a dog turd on your brand new rug and puts years on me to watch it. I can't understand why we don't have more local talent in our squad. I think Davey prefers second-rate jocks than local lads and it's a disgrace. Take a look around the leagues and you will see players from Merseyside dominating the headlines. Gerrard, Carragher, Rooney, Nolan, Barton, Trundle the list is endless. We even gave Barton away and told him he wasn't going to make it. We have great local talent at our disposal but we don't utilise it. No one can tell me there are no local lads who could not do a better job than some of the shite we have in our squad now. The truth is, Kev, we have a clueless
chairman, and a clueless manager who between
them will ruin us. This is the worst double act
since the Krankies and believe me it can only
get worse with them in charge. And Nothing But..... Are these reasons for getting rid of Moyes?
In an earlier posting I said that three goals in
the next four games should be enough for him to
be kept on and in fact there has been three in
three games. Hopefully, the idea that scoring
goals improves your chances of winning games has
sunk in and we shall see more enterprising
football for the rest of the season. It's just a
pity that the start of the season was so
important. Don't do it! The yin and the yang That leaves us in the position we find ourselves in, with peak and trough seasons. It ensures us fanatical Blues are either on Cloud Nine or fumbling with the worry beads, sometimes from game to game � never mind season to season. Until the club can reverse the situation and attract and keep the the top-notchers then the mailbag will remain both pro- and anti-everything. I just hope that whoever are the management
of the day keep getting the best out of the
players they are in a position to sign and give
us the odd moments of ecstasy. In short, to be
an Evertonian � given all circumstances � is to
be a true footy fan. May the investment be with
us soon. See you Sat. UP THE BLUES Read the lines... not between em' Anyway, on to the main reason for my troubling this site for the second time in 24 hours. Mr Tony Marsh of Huyton. �Kevin Sprake (sic) says there is no place for bottomless pessimism from the likes of me.� Erm� no I didn�t Tony; I actually said: 'I�m not saying that there is no place for the bottomless pessimism of Mr Marsh and his ilk.' "What I am trying to say, Kev Sprake, is this: I think I have as much right as anyone to have a go at the current regime." � Too right you have! I welcome your opinion� don�t happen to hold it myself but it�s good to debate these things. I happen to think that, in the last 20 years, on the football side we�ve not done as badly as we might have. When you consider that we�ve managed to stay in the top echelon of football despite having no money, the worst chairman in the history of the club (�Spuddie�) and have had much more of our share of misfortune and mismanagement. I also think we �bottomed out� just before Moyes was appointed and things on and off the pitch are starting to look a little better. I�d still like to know what was happening re the Fortress Sports Fund, and I�m really unhappy with the way the club seems to ride roughshod over its most precious asset, the fanatical support for the club. However, I love Everton but I�m not going to let them drag me down into an ever decreasing spiral of despair. When I watch a game, I look for the good things I see and latch onto them, feed upon them. I�ve seen enough to convince me that we have enough players with ability to finish upper/mid-table this season; certainly enough to avoid the drop. I believe that Moyes will come good and so will our team; but some fellow blue noses had better start coming to terms with the fact that we are not a �Big Five� club any more� we're not even in the top ten: the denial of building on the team of 1985 and having a crap team when the Premier League began saw to that. We�re still suffering from 20-odd years of mismanagement from the top; and �Blue Bill� is saddled with trying to pay the mortgage whilst the roof�s falling in and the bailiffs are bashing down the door. (Thank the Lord for the Wayne Rooney money!) Nevertheless, consider the alternative; would you really want an Abramovich or a Glazer at Everton? (The thing about sugar daddies is they tend to love 'em and leave 'em� what happens to Chelsea when Abramovich leaves or gets chucked in the chokie or when Glazer pegs out and his creditors dismantle his empire built upon sand). So, Tony Marsh, you can either give yourself fifty lashes every time we play badly or fail to compete in the transfer market with Chelsea, Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool, Newcastle and even Middlesbro; or come to terms with the fact that we are punching well above our weight but look as if we�re getting fitter, leaner and stronger. It�s up to you mate� but take off the doom
and gloom specs for a change� you never know you
might even accurately see what I�ve actually
written instead of seeing what you want to see:
Something depressing that just aint there! Li Tie Perhaps this explains his continued absence
and I hope this deosn't spoil your conspiracy
theory. More Reasons to be Cheerful On the whole I agree with you James, and I share your optimism for the coming months, but would like to add a couple of comments to your article: First, for all the talk of a need of a good striker, I don't remember ever hearing anyone mention Yakubu this summer (the editor will probably prove me wrong), the second highest goalscorer in the premiership over the past two seasons. McClaren may be an annoying knobhead but he has snapped up a proven goalscorer for a not extortionate price and I would have liked to see Moyesy give that one a try. Second, Robbie Keane just doesn't do it for me. For the last year or so the fan sites have devoted insane amounts of coverage to this possible signing, but I just can't get excited about it. Yes, he would provide us with an amusing celebration if he ever scored a goal, but he's too often hugely anonymous in games. Maybe I'll be proved wrong in the not too distant future, but he's an undoubtedly inconsistent player. Finally, not directly relevant I admit, but I have faith in Moyesey's signing of Beattie. Remember when Moysey asked Strachan's advice and he had said that if you get a 100% fit Beattie then you have a great striker... well, I think that's starting to happen. I had a flutter on Beattie and 1-0 for the Boro game and at 28-1 had a tasty return on it. I think we're starting to see what he can do, and with the improvements happening in other parts of the team, as I said before, I'm optimistic. ps: Keep Neville at left-back... is it a
coincidence that since he's played there we
haven't conceded a goal? Its a matter of opinions The Titanic was they said unsinkable, it could not go down. Well the iceberg has not yet been struck with Captain Moyes at the helm but how much longer until we are firing off blue distress flares. Kevin Sprake says there is no place for bottomless pessimism from the likes of me. Well, supreme opptimism is in short supply around Everton supporters these days, especially me. I love Everton as much as anyone and went to my first game at Goodison in 1969 when I was six years of age. Since then I have been through all the stages of being an Evertonian:
What I am trying to say, Kev Sprake, is this: I think I have as much right as anyone to have a go at the current regime. It's nothing new to me: I have seen it all before. Some people like yourself try to kid themselves that somehow the past 40 years are just a blip and we are on the way back. We are not. We had a few good years in the
80s; that's it. If you want to know what the
future holds look to the past; it's all there. Ed's respnse re: Resting Cahill 1) I think Moyes became desperate with our results and was miraculously hoping for Tim to return to form, although deep down he knew he was knackered. Now he sees creativity and goals from another source (Van/Beattie even Davies) he may see this as the ideal time to rest him. 2)Agree completely, naive from Moyes. 3)Yes but Davies hitting form centrally plus Van and the great form of Arteta mean we can afford to rest Tim. Valente's return (as reported) will free up Neville for midfield if needs be. 4) Great point what a joy Li Tie was in our 7th place season, boundless energy, keet it simple, link from defense to midfield, I miss his presence. We need to begin a major enquiry on this, WE NEED ANSWERS, scared? Prem too physical? Surely not WHAT IS GOING ON? 5) Probably is guesswork from the Times and I am sure Moyes has said nothing concrete but makes sense. Do we need Tim to beat West Brom, Newcastle @ home and Blackburn? I would hope our squad is now strong enough. Thanks for the dialogue, time will tell....
Resting Cahill This, to me, seems to make sense now that
players are coming back from injury. Early on in
the season it was difficult for Moyes to give
Tim a rest due to depleted numbers. However with
Van der Meyde, Arteta, Davies, Bent, Osman,
Kilbane and Neville we have enough to win games
against West Brom, Newcastle and Blackburn
without over exerting Tim. Then over the festive
period he can come back well rested and start
banging in the goals from midfield again. The
only test for Moyes is going to be resisting the
urge not to play him if we continue to struggle
to score. A happy Blue... However, my tickets for the West Brom match have just arrived and I feel excited! I bloody love being a Blue. I cannot wait to get down to West Brom (potentially an oxymoronic statement there!) and cheer on the Blues again. I just hope the players give me something to cheer... Good times; bad times... I wouldn't change
being a Blue for anything! From Deeply Cynical
but Still Excited in Leeds. Transfer Window - (No) Big Deal! However, I am not at all optimistic about our chances of landing, say, Robbie Keane, to mention the player whose name most often crops up in connection with us. The same goes for any other top player who we the supporters would be delighted to sign. After all, the following conditions all have to be met: (a) Chelsea don't even want him for their
reserves; The list of those who weren't interested when we were a Champions League club (yeah, doesn't it seem a long time ago?) was long - so what makes some people ridiculously optimistic and think the likes of Keane and Gravesen might be seen in a blue shirt in the New Year? Yours downheartedly, a lifelong Blue. Pop Quiz Should be in the Everton dictionary! And if
there is no such thing, may I ask why the hell
not? Down Dingle way Woe Vadis The free citizens of Rome would turn out in their thousands to cheer the General through the streets. However, the Romans were a suspicious lot and always wary of people getting carried away with delusions of grandeur. So being the practical minded people they were, they made sure there was a slave strategically placed behind the victorious general. This slave�s sole task was to constantly whisper in the Generals ear:�Remember, thou art mortal� remember thou art mortal.� Mr Tony Marsh of Huyton fulfils that role very adequately on this website. Now don�t get me wrong� I�m not saying that there is no place for the bottomless pessimism of Mr Marsh and his ilk. After all; even an eternal optimist like myself concedes that certain things need urgent attention at Everton (another striker and goalkeeping cover for starters; the reintroduction of the basic skill of retaining possession through accurate passing and a little bit more invention in the final third of the field). Nevertheless, I believe that the silver lining surrounding the dark cloud is getting bigger by the game. That silver lining consists of a fit mobile �Biffa� Beattie who is now threatening the opposition�s defence rather than threatening blokes in Midland�s night spots; the emergence of VDM who is looking like the most elegant wide player we�ve had since Sheedy, and the growing stature of Joseph Yobo and Arteta� both who seem to be getting better by the game. I honestly believe that, barring injury, Everton will be in the top half of the table by January. So Tony do me a favour mate; keep writing the stuff. Us optimists need a wake-up call every now and again� but please bear in mind there are pills you can take for manic depression� �here have some of mine. What is it? Are so many content to play this style, hopefully avoid relegation and clamber for mid-table? We simply aren't progressing and we won't until he leaves. This really is like Walter all over again... the minority saw it early; it took a few more years of dross before everyone finally opened their eyes. Why is it that we never learn from our mistakes? Oh, and Tony Marsh was spot on; its almost
like mass hypnosis. It's so depressing to be in
this situation again, basically no hope for
years and years, and I, for one, am totally
pissed off. Tony Marsh's cat Get the begging bowl out Is it worth a try or do we carry on as we are and stay in an ageing old stadium with players to match. It's not the perfect thing to do but there might be something there for us. Rick Parry is not promoting Liverpool FC, he is begging for money for a stadium, we should try it. Oh, and spot on Tony Marsh. Am I being ripped off? What do my season tickets give me, if the club are offering cut-price deals to non-season ticket holders? Guaranteed seat for FA Cup, League Cup and European games? Well no, they have already proved that they are not competent enough to do that (Villarreal tickets???). How about getting hold of away tickets? Nope. As someone whose shifts means he works every other weekend, I can't get any away match stubs so I can't go to the occasional away game. The latest offer (although I concede there is a 'selling point' within it), is free seats at the derby, if you buy a half-season-ticket. I'm being ripped off again! I've paid out �755-00 for this season, from the start. How many free games do I get? Err? NONE! How many Dad & Lad tickets do I get? Err? None! I have nothing against Evertonians picking and choosing what games they come to watch, as not everyone can shell out for it week-in, week-out. But, surely, those who do (and many of us are stretched to the limit), deserve a little something back. The way things are at present, it is better
to 'pick and choose' a game than to pay up early
and commit to the whole season. We've all gone doolally Top six a possibility, Beattie for England, Corner turned looking good etc, etc... Am I the only one who thinks we are absolute garbagge to watch, play possibly the worst football in the Premier League and are only a poor decision away from defeat every time we play. If this is the way the rest of the season is going to unfold, it's going to be one hard long slog. We never ever look comfortable in games regardless of the opposition. We are always at full stretch and hanging on for grim death in every game. I often wonder if it is actually Alan Irvine who dictates the way we play. Watch the two of them at the next game. Irvine with his little bits of paper whispering in Moyes's ear every five minutes. Then Moyes bellowing out the instructions; it's the same every week and it baffles me. In reply to Chris Wright: No, I don't want a Chairman who makes team selections. I do want a Chairman with some balls, someone in the Dave Whelan mould who gives it to you straight, can you see someone like Whelan kissing Moyes's arse after the fiasco of the season so far? I can't. I never have any great expectations where
Everton are concerned but what has gone on over
the past six months is simply not acceptable. If
avoiding relegation and playing ale-house
football is what it's all about then we are in
for plenty of it with Moyes in charge. [Or is
that Irvine?] Fact and fiction Am I alone in having a funny feeling about
this guy? I`ve had my suspicions since the day
he signed and went on Sky to say he`d even never
spoken to Moyes before putting pen to paper! Promising... By the way, this is Beattie: "There's always time, I haven't given up hope as regards playing for England. I'm pretty confident in myself and what I can do, and hopefully if the team keeps on winning and the goals keep coming, then who knows? All I can do is keep trying." Three goals in what, 10 months, and you're
suddenly Thierry Henry? Somebody wake the man
up. Graveson and Keane Would you rather have someone like Kuyt �12M transfer and say �75k wages or Gravo and Keane for slightly less but a bigger wage bill? Dead simple for me: get the quality striker in. There must be a very good reason why Robbie Keane doesn't start every week. Don't tell me Jol is stupid. If you look at the signings DM has made, do we need Gravo if Carsley is fit? The squad has moved on. So if Gravo comes in at �2.5M and �20k/week wages, fine. If not, good luck and adios. He is not worth what Real Madrid pay him. The last match I saw him in for them he was red-carded on the pitch within 5 mins. As for Keane, we can do better than that. If every Evertonian wants a team that performs to top six consistently, then you need to to the match, buy the merchandsie and for fook's sake stop booing and heckling them. I read so much negative stuff on ToffeeWeb (and before you ask I have been a fan since I was 8) 32 years on. Is it partially true that our own negativity (some would say realism) that we cause our own demise? The recent Beattie incident, fans in the ground chose to wind him up? He responded, some got angry with him. WHY are we as fans winding up our biggest EVER signing? He made a mistake by challenging his home support. But what the feck, it's his first three-match run, he's been injured. If you want to pick on someone for no good
reason, go and bash your head on a brick wall.
Prejudice should be out of football, so should
stupidity. Because we don't get a good start
people are doom and gloom and have zero vision. Gravesen: no transfer option It is imperative that Moyes finds a new central midfielder who does not raise the above problems. It�d be worth paying �5M or �6M for a younger player on smaller wages. (How much more would Reo Coker cost if wages and transfer fee were considered together?) I�m sorry to throw cold water � it's nice to think of him back in the blue � but EFC cannot afford the luxury of shopping senior players from Real�s first-team squad. Why are the club even talking about it in the press? Certain to lead to more transfer embarrassment, in my view, with MUFC alleged to be snooping about. I hope I�m proven wrong and that he confesses undying love for us, which means he�s willing to halve his wages and forget about the Champions League for the foreseeable future, but until I am I reckon the EFC scouts should go and watch some matches instead of the first half of the DVD of last season. Some people might respond to this with "Nil
satis nisi optimum". I say "Get real: nil
sell-on, no transfer option." (See what I did
there....?) Where does the blame lie? Given the known fact that we had to bring in a number of new players, and would therefore need the maximum attention to get them playing together and getting along, the club proceeded to accept the invitation to play in Thailand and then set up the meaningless friendly with Fenerbah�e on the way home. I completely agree with Rob Fox, this type of trip was never one to bring the players �together�. The fact that the opposition was other Premier League clubs, the weather, the fact that it was in the home country of our sponsor all meant more socializing in public and little meaningful training. We�d have been better off going to Rhyl for the week. Faced with this schedule, David Moyes should�ve planned around it by organizing more appropriate surroundings in the subsequent weeks but he didn�t until the recent Lakes outing. We weren�t ready for this type of major trip to the Far East and we shouldn�t have taken it. Recent evidence shows that we didn�t need to take the invitation for the money, and we could have hooked up with Chang after the season. The transfer dealings issue is well discussed and well documented, and it shows our inexperience in middle-range transfer dealings. If you want quality players don�t be penny-wise but pound-foolish (the Yankee phrase nickel and diming is a better one but I�m not sure everyone would know what it means). Again recent evidence shows that we had the money to close some of the �failed� transfers but chose not to because they didn�t fit into our �valuations�. David, I�m sorry, football is a crazy and stupid business, no one is worth the money that they make, but if you want to buy quality you have to be prepared to spend some money and it may be more than you�d like to, but that is the way that it is! If DM had a list of the players he wanted he should have bought them or had a back-up plan, and part of that back-up plan should have been a bottom-line, if all else fails I�m buying the following players and be done with it. As it was, Dave�s bottom-line plan was just go with who did the business last year. I don�t know if having the likes of Scott Parker and Dirk Kuyt in the team would have made a difference to the recent nightmare, but with better preparation we may have found out. The issue of bad luck is also interesting. We have had some horrendous �luck� to be sure, but the other side to that is that we won at Bolton and we deserved nothing from that game. The only thing that sticks to the bad luck angle is Collina. I�ve never liked referees, never will. I guess it started with Clive Thomas, but then continued with the idiot who failed to send off Jimmy Case for wrecking Geoff Nulty�s career (if my fading memory is correct), and it has never got any better. Refereeing is too hard to be done brilliantly, and let�s face it you can never please everyone at a football game with any decision you make. Anyway, I finally got so upset with the local youth refereeing that I actually signed up, got certified and now I work between 3 and 5 games every Saturday. The adage is that ref�s don�t cost you a game and for the most part they don�t, but Collina not only lost us a game but wrecked our season. If Everton score at that point in the game, every Blue in the world would agree that we would have gone on to win that tie. As it was, we lose and every shred of confidence we had evaporated. Everyone had built up their expectations so high that the loss was more than the players and staff could take. We may have been able to overcome the lack of unity in a side hastily put together, the poor transfer strategy, the stupid Far East trip and we may even have gotten over the poor tactical preparation, but with no confidence, the result is a season that is only now starting to even faintly show some promise. Boro was another step forward, a bit more football, and three points. Hopefully, we can use the next few weeks to work on the wayward passing that was consistently falling behind the intended receiver, the constant long-ball tactics that bypass a reasonably talented midfield and merely give up possession, and it also might allow someone time to let James know that he needs to stop with the stupid antics (�can you hear me now?�) and just shut-up. Evertonians appreciate players who score goals, not blab on about scoring goals and then miss sitters from the 6 yard line (�Kanu hear me now?� � sorry that was an attempt at American/Verizon* humour). God bless the Blues!
Pain Relief Beattie's hand-to-ear action I watched MOTD2 last night and they asked Beattie about his celebration. He said something along the lines of "Some young lads in the crowd said, 'Give us a goal, Beatts!' just before the corner was taken and after I scored I thought I would ask them if they enjoyed it." Not sure how true it all was but that was his
explanation. Minority One step at a time Not that you need anyone to fight your battles for you, but I find the ToffeeWeb mailbag to be an educated, fair and honest reflection of fans' thoughts and frustrations based on the facts as they find them, without the bias or spin that gets added on other EFC websites. The team has a long way to go and are finally getting relatively free of injuries. Let's hope this continues and they start to really gel... but let's not put all our hopes on a 'saviour striker' from the upcoming January transfer window as we missed not one but two such windows in the summer when there was just as much need as there is right now � and European football on offer to attract them. Having said that, I do believe that corners have been turned and the team Moyes thought capable of taking third place in this year's Premiership will soon be at hand. Our confidence is returning, what we need now
is patience. COYB We are not Madrid yet... I think we deserved to win, because we wanted it slightly more, but another team would have turned us over yesterday due to slack marking, being far too deep, and not closing down the opposition. These should be basic traits in a footballer. That situation needs to be addressed quickly by Moyse and his staff. All of you have seen this season how One-Nils can easily go the other way. We rode our luck yesterday, as we did at times against Birmingham and at home to Chelsea. We are still relying on Lady Luck at times and that shouldn't be the case. AVdM looks very good, if a little unfit and Beattie scored again, things are looking a LITTLE better. Although the County Road fanatics were again celebrating like we'd won the league... again! Just one last word on Beattie � this hand to
ear action that he is still doing � James, I
hope that isn't a jibe at the lads in the ground
who have rightly given you stick about your
input for the last 10 months. You're getting
�25-30k a week to score goals, don't carry on
with this defiance, you are actually still shite
in case you forgot. They said Hoddle was mad! Just heard on Talksport that Kenwright was so desperate three weeks ago that he asked his `lifestyle guru` for help and she called in her mother, a spiritual medium!Apparently, they came up with some cunning plan which Billy passed on to the Manager � with such startling results! Nice to know our Club is in such safe hands
isn`t it? And they said Hoddle was mad! Killjoy! We seem to be getting a few breaks at last, but the standard of our play is shocking. Why when opposition midfielders get the ball do all our players seem too far away from them, and why do we sit so deep and give so much room just outside the box and down the flanks, and why do we continue to float high, lofted balls into the box when one of the few times its whipped in we score? AvdM is clearly a huge improvement on Kilbane
but I'm not sure he's got that explosive pace we
so desperately need. We are painfully slow and
until that is addressed we are all going to have
to be happy with fighting to avoid the
relegation zone, or at best, mid-table
mediocrity whist playing atrocious football.
Personally, I just dont think that is good
enough for us, and with the money spent and the
time he's had Moyes hasn't delivered and I don't
think he ever really will. Back from the game The only worry I had was when the excellent Davies once again succumbed to injury and VDM had negotiated his seventy mins the paucity of the bench was exposed. On the plus side with displays like the last two we will be ok for mid-table and with the base we have now I can only hope DM has players in mind who will actually sign for us to augment the quality we already possess and then we may really see a team able to depend more on School of Science than sheer grit and determination. I hope for more points winning enjoyable
games after the break � UP THE BLUES! Thank God! We're Winning! One or two thoughts: Beattie is our top scorer with 50% of our goals, a ratio higher than any other Premiership striker, especially when one considers he's only started in less than half our games. Is Kroldrup, our second/third most expensive signing ever, really slower and less effective than the aging Weir, who is whole-hearted, but not exactly Brian Labone, Roger Kenyon, Derek Mountfield, Dave Watson? Surely David Moyes trusts his own acumen in the transfer market? I was disappointed that United won, but feel that the top team should always lose away to their major challengers. After all, being old, I remember our wing-half (mid-fielder to all under 50) playing as an emergency centre-forwar (striker to all under.......) and scoring two at Goodison against the champions elect from across the park in 63-64. Keep it up Everton, I love you, but this
isn't a team that will challenge for anything.
It'll always be a fight against the bottom rung.
On the Up Ho ho ho! With Tommy Gravesen likely to be returning to
his rightful home in the New Year as the
Chairman continues to back the Manager`s
judgement in the transfer market, ALL
Evertonians have reason to be very optimistic
from now on. Bet your `Misery Mailbag` will dry
up a bit though. Ho ho ho! Reply to Tony Marsh In reply to Tony Marsh So he wants a Board who interferes all the
time does he? � How about in team selection or
tactics? And this don't forget is a Board he
doesn't rate. How does that work? Moyes bought
these players and if it doesn't work he has to
carry the can. Talk about smug! Now, this morning, I see Moyes is at it in a piece on the Sky Sports website. `Moyes Pleased with Toffees` screams the headline and goes on to tell what a marvellous job he`s done over the past three years! `We`re certainly capable of goals from the likes of Cahill, Davies and Arteta,` he tells us � and leaving aside the fact that this trio have scored precisely ONE between them in our ten league matches this season. He makes no mention of the plonker he`s spent �6M on whose job that really is! I know we have to take the long view � we`ve been doing it for 20 years � but to spin what little has been achieved recently as fabulous success is just too much for me to take. For God`s sake, any fool should know that you
can tart up your balance sheet by disposing of
your assets but if your product is total crap
then it`s only a question of time before the
figures go south again! Same as it ever was Regardless of how much Big Phil has or has not put in to the club, the fact remains he is treated like royalty at Goodison and I don't understand why. He has made a career for himself being a professional Evertonian going back all the way back to the John Moores era. I know he is a life long President, but why? What has he ever done to deserve such an honour? And there lies the problem. As long as the old gaurd are still getting their Limos and free Gin and Tonics every week, we will never move on. Fans at Goodison still watch football from the same stands Dixie Dean played in front of and its shameful. Still as long as President Phil and Bungalow Bill can pat each other on the back at every home game from their newly refurbished Vice Presidents Suite, we will all sleep easy knowing we are in safe hands. Modernisation is required throughout the
whole club the sooner the better. Money Money Money As for this fantastic board of ours, Kenwright included, who was it allowed Dynamo Dave to spend that entire amount[�20M] on Beattie, Kr�ldrup, Valente and Davies? Great bit of buisness, that! While I am at it, what's with all these articles saying this site is negative and doom related? What do people want? The truth? Or sexed up versions of what fans really want to believe??? At least this site allows the message to get across to people regardless of what that message might be. Sugar-coating the truth is not what we want; tell it as it is boys. If some people don't like it... tough! Everton are in a right mess from the top down. Where is our new ground? But still the Board is doing a great job, eh
Jamie... Anderson Silva Wyness Financial Engineering Which Bucuresti? I don't know if you remember... but we played DINAMO Bucharest... Not STEAUA.. Ironically... Dinamo Bucharest are BOTTOM of
their group, F. Displaced Mainstanders are you going to the AGM ? I bought shares in the club this year with the sole intention of the purchase being to register my disgust at how we were treated prior to the start of the season.I am hoping that I will be allowed to do this at this meeting. It is my intention to raise the plight of John & Pat Griffiths who had sat in row A for over 35yrs and have now informed me they will not be watching Everton any longer after this season. I find that very sad, and would appreciate comments from any toffeeweb readers who have actually attended an AGM as to whether I will actually get a chance to speak . It is an absolute disgrace that our seats remain empty at �125.00 a time and for all the world to see when we are on the box. No other club could treat their supporters the way EFC have and Wyness should stand up and be counted on this point. I would appreciate any support on this matter and hope that others can offer some guidance.Please let me know if you are going to the AGM and feel strongly about this issue my email address is stephen.lyth@alchemyadvisoryservices.com. Thank you fellow blues John McLaughlin Behind the numbers or the glass half empty For millenia you whinge on about how much debt the club is in and how the tossers on the Board have done nothing about it. Then when they do something you give half-hearted credit then whinge that either (a)it's all a con job by Wyness and his 'stooges' at the Echo (b) we're 'only' making �100k profit ignoring transfers (despite the fact that was a �17M deficit previously) (c) they've probably conned us by banking the Rooney money (no evidence of that but hey, don't let the truth get in the way of a good whinge). Priceless! Are you preparing for Christmas?
Repeat after me, 'Bah! Humbug!' Profits and Performance-Related Pay 1966 FA Cup Celebration ps: If you lot weren't so negative, I'd write
more exclusive revelations for you... Euro ranking Pattern Emerging All not in vain, Rob! Additionally... Richard Dodd John McLaughlin � Last Season You suggesting the fans are to blame shows a shocking arrogance. We have gone from being a "decent hardworking team" to a "laughing stock", in 4 very short months. How are the fans to blame for that, John? The fact that we took MORE than the home support to Spain for the Villarreal game? The fact that thousands more travelled to Bucharest after the dissapointment of Villarreal? The fact that 26,000 turned out to watch a team in a second leg of a cup match where there was more chance of a David Weir hat-trick than us to go through to the next round? No, John. You've got it wrong lad. The blame
lies anywhere else but with the fans. We have
expectations because our club crest tells us to
accept nothing but the best. Nothing but the
best, John � from a club that delivers Anything
but the best from Boardroom down. Have a think
before you write bollocks, John. Stop the Negativity Will Ya! Once again, you have managed to put a negative spin on something positive coming from the club. I question whether you are actual supporters of the club or whether you take enjoyment from pulling down everything that they do. If you care to read the article, it clearly states that the money from Rooney was given back to moyes to spend. It also shows that a sizeable chunk of the club�s debt was paid off � putting us in a much safer financial position. The Board has done a good job this time � love them or loathe them, even the editors at Toffeeweb can�t deny that this is a great piece of news for all associated with Everton Football Club. It�s about time that ToffeeWeb started to be
positive about the club it supposedly supports.
I am all for the airing of views and opinions
but not everything has to have a negative tone!
Onwards and Upwards! Rob Fox - the read digested please Most of the time he's got good things to say,
but to be honest I'm losing the will to live
after trawling through his recent ramblings. What a waste Never mind all the bollocks about us finishing fourth, what fucking good did it do? Even now it keeps me awake at night thinking what might of been... If only Dopey Dave had signed a few decent players when we had the chance we would of beat the greasy headed twats from Spain and it would of been fucking GREAT! Instead, we are ridiculed from all angles by wanker supporters from no-mark teams from no-mark towns. Will we ever recover from this disastarous page in our history? I don't think so. We are still paying the price now. Why did Moyses think that the team which limped across the finishing line in a shit Premier League could take on the cream of Europe with out any significant reinforcements. I hate Moyses for that and I will never get over it. Leaving Villarreal's ground with my son in tears will stay with me for ever. IMWT � not me matey. There goes another telly. Don't blame the fans! Who's to blame ? Personally I blame the fans for having unrealistic expectations of a team that, even in our best season for nearly 20 years wasn't actually very good. Last season we hardly scored and never really gave anyone a thrashing. Apart from the obvious highs of the games against Liverpool and Man Utd, there were only a couple of actually exciting games; we won a lot more than we were used to, usually 1-0, but entertainers we wern't. We benefitted from the fact that the Premier League isn't very good. So, rather than blame Moyes for being negative or Bent for being rubbish, let's just thank god we had a good season last year and that things will hopefully pick up soon and we regain our place in mid-table mediocrity because, with our squad and inept Board, that's all we can hope for long term. Moyes is a miracle worker to get a good season from our squad; while he has made mistakes, I'd rather dwell on the fact that, without him, we would almost certainly be relegated by now. So keep reaching for the stars, fellow
Bluenoses. Why no Kr�ldrup? Moyes spent big money on a player who
admitted to a long-standing injury on arrival
and as we go into November it`s beginning to
look like another Moysie `booboo`! Read all about it! `Little Leaguers` Stats can show anything you wanna see Below are the league placings the two managers would have finished with their average points tally of 51 and 43 (rounded up) - after all, the Premiership is a tight league.
Obviously I have too much time on my hands but I think this showes Moyes clearly is more successful than Smith and in my opinion has earned more faith than we are showing him at the moment. Everyone is entitled to their opinion and mine might change if we are bottom at Xmas but I still truly believe Moyes is the right man for the job. I do believe we have our strongest squad in
years and with a few additions in January I
think a top ten place is still easily possible.
Comparisons SMITH � P:143 W:41 D:42 L:60 F:173 A:190 Pts:165 MOYES � P:133 W:50 D:29 L:54 F:159 A:186 Pts:179 You will note their is not a massive difference in both records and if you consider that DM has spent more than Smith it begs the question if Smith wasn't good enough then neither is Moyes. "Ah, but we finished 4th last season!" is the cry... yet we all know that was based on 4 months of scraping one-nils and playing dull football. Now I was no fan of Smith but on occasions we did play some good football and actually scored more than 3 goals 11 times, including two five-nils and a six-nil, which was heaven compared to the present era when we have only scored more than 2 goals on 7 occasions. And look at some of the hammerings we have taken under DM - 7-0, 6-2, 5-1, 5-2 and yet despite it all he is still revered by the majority. Let everyone reflect on all of the above and
ask yourselves if we have the right manager
because I think I am missing the trick
somewhere. Matt Wiley � Point of Order My point is this: The football is awful. I bought three adult season tickets and one junior season ticket. I live in Anfield and did not have a holiday last year. I've watched players in fancy suits and and fancy cars and have realised that I could have taken my family on holiday instead. I've watched a so-called professional club play the worst football at times this season I have ever witnessed. If I had a few quid extra and lived in a nice area like Formby or Ormskirk, the money I paid out wouldn't hurt as much. But I'm an ordinary working man and I don't like what I've bought. I can't call the waiter to change it or take it back for the next size. One thing I can do is go on holiday next year. Whilst I'm sunning myself I know my family had a good break and I didn't let my money go to over-paid under-average players who are so far out of touch with the likes of me, they don't care. I've never felt like this before but when you feel you are being laughed at behind the blacked out windows of a top-of-the-range BMW being driven by 'top players', then that selfishness from those players is rubbing me the wrong way. Maybe now, you understand why some us moan. WISH YOU WHERE HERE. In a league of our own As at this morning, we have no less than seven teams `below the water mark` as even Pompey in 14th spot fail the test. So with all other diversions � European success/qualification, Carling Cup � out of the equation, I`ve decided to focus my attention on that mini-league of seven, safe in the knowledge that, if we can attain fourth place amongst that lot, our tenure in the Premiership is assured! So from now on, I shall cheer Man Utd, Chelsea, Arsenal and even `that lot` whenever they take points from our `fellow leaguers`. Sad what we`re reduced to, ain't it? |
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ToffeeWeb Letters from
October 2005 |
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