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Comments (54) : What ever the answers to the above questions may be, you wont hear me complain if we continue to play like that for the remainder of the season. The commitment, the passion and the spirit shown on Saturday afternoon is all I have ever asked for from the team. The Hoofball mentality was nowhere to be seen either and that made a big difference.
I can't believe it's the same players who were out there on Saturday that have shown so little for nearly a year now. The best Everton display for many a long year if you ask me. Ok the Mancs a gave us a good going over in the first 45 minutes but it was the way we responded after the break that has given me so much belief back.
Man Utd are the current League and European Champions yet we made them look second rate at times. The biggest compliments came from the Mancs themselves all though they didn't know it. Once the diving and the whinging starts, you know they are rattled. Once the ref starts getting the blame it's even better .Oh and once shithouse Rooney starts his antics, then we know we have definitely got them on the back foot. Didn't you just love that badge-kissing twat getting pulled off?Only goes to show what a thick little runt he really is.
The big question now is can David Moyes keep us playing with the same determination and desire as we showed against the Mancs? Can we sustain the passing game and the workrate we put in at the weekend? Will Moyes revert back to type at Bolton on Wednesday night or has hoofball been consigned to the history books for good?
We have seen Everton sides play some good stuff over the years only for us to go back to basic long-ball tactics the very next game. If Saturday's second half display hasn't once and for all put to bed the bad habits of the past then I don't know what will. Surely Moyes has realised what many of us have said for years... Hoofball doesn't work anymore.
If I had to single out one player for praise from Saturday's fightback it would have to be Phil Neville. The tackle Neville made on Wonder Woman Rohnaldo was the turning point that ignited the crowd. Once the Blue touch paper is lit at Goodison Park very few teams can cope with the atmosphere, including the mighty Man Utd as was proven.
Saturday 25 October 2008 was the day when a little bit of light was seen at the end of the tunnel. When Wayne Rooney finally lost any small piece of his Scousness he had left and where Phil Neville cast off his tag as a Man Utd sypmathiser and earned the right to be called a real Bluenose.
More of the same please, Davey, and let the players play. They proved some of us doubters wrong on Saturday and now it's your duty to repeat the dose. No more Hoofball and lets get the pride back in to the Everton team. Play like we did on Saturday and the crowd will be with you all the way... See you at the Greybok Wednesday Boys ? I am back on board.... COYBs
Reader Comments (54)
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2 Posted 28/10/2008 at 14:31:58
3 Posted 28/10/2008 at 14:32:33
It?s great to see some passion & spirit back in the players but I?d be surprised if Andy O?Brien doesn?t spend most of Wednesday night out-jumping the Yak as Saha looks on from the bench.
4 Posted 28/10/2008 at 14:40:01
I?ve got too say that in the last couple of months Tony you have spoken a lot of sense. Previously I have looked for your posts just to make my views seem slightly more balanced. This piece really underlines for me that you do give credit where it is due (although I do get the feeling this hasn?t always been the case).
Phil Neville was fantastic at the weekend, and we did have the Mancs on the ropes. To see Rooney with his knickers in a twist did highlight how much we got under their skin.
As you say, lets hope for some more. Less hoofball is certainly the progressive stance we need to take.
5 Posted 28/10/2008 at 14:38:51
6 Posted 28/10/2008 at 14:45:04
7 Posted 28/10/2008 at 15:02:13
8 Posted 28/10/2008 at 15:03:53
We even got the Mancs moanin? in The Times about the way we treated Judas on Saturday. No-one forgets an old mate who turned out to be a back-stabbing liar; let?s make sure he?s reminded of it at every opportunity.
If Moyes (or Jimmy Corner) made the difference at half time on Saturday then praise is due. Just hoping that the pride and passion carries through for the full 90 minutes on Wednesday ? and long may it continue.
9 Posted 28/10/2008 at 15:15:56
Full of heart and fight (Just like my article asked for a few weeks ago).
All we want is that level of commitment every week and we will be happy with the application of the team.
The results will follow!!!
ps: By far the best game Phil Neville has had for years.
10 Posted 28/10/2008 at 15:18:17
We can still win the league by the way.
11 Posted 28/10/2008 at 15:21:41
Where?s me tablets???
Ha ha, roll on Wednesday and we?ll see,,,,,
12 Posted 28/10/2008 at 15:44:08
13 Posted 28/10/2008 at 15:45:55
Anyway, we needed just a piece of luck on Saturday to win the match and the luck went off the far post on the Yak?s effort. But, I watched the match again last night and except for that period of time from about 15 mins in to about 40 mins in, we did all the things we need to do on a weekly basis.
And now, I can say with a straight face, we are out of two cups and we CAN concentrate on the league, and we CAN prepare for a long run in the FA Cup. So, our short-term goal is to keep up the spirit of the match from Saturday, and long term it is to climb into the top half, and make that run starting in about two months.
Will Cahill be available tomorrow? Has he served all three? And when he is available, does he go straight back in?
14 Posted 28/10/2008 at 15:56:25
Cahill is back, but based on a 4-4-2 formation against United (Yab & Saha upfront) can we accomodate him?
15 Posted 28/10/2008 at 16:02:04
Just on one point, I do not for a minute believe that the team is sent out to play hoofball. Hoofball is the end product when the players lack any confidence to try and pass their way out of trouble, or are in such poor form that the players do not want to take responsibility.
This lack of confidence to me stemmed from our pre-season lack of form, basically due to having only 4 first teamers available for most of July, and about only 10 available at the start of the season.
Once we started poorly, the confidence totally drained away and it's taken a small number of steps, one at a time, to get somewhere near to last season. Hopefuly it's virtually 100% restored now.
16 Posted 28/10/2008 at 16:31:50
Much respect to you Tony, well done.
As far as the hoofball mentality etc: I noted a few points in the second that we had an attacker bearing down on their defender and the Devils had put the ball out of play or just hoof it away. Maybe not as common as us in the first half, but I can be sure that they were not told to hoof it. We were on the attack and under their skin.
One point does not make a line, but there is now hope that the players we brought in late are solidifying as a team and that we can continue with confidence and passion.
COYB
17 Posted 28/10/2008 at 16:43:57
Moyes seems genuinely perplexed as to why we?ve generally been so shite so far this season, but fuck that which is in the past! Gotta get the lads fired up to storm the Reebok, thump Fulham and get this start of the march into a season long charge....
The ingredients are there to get in the run of form we had last season around this time. Only now we don?t have the mid-week Uefa and Milk Cup games, plus AFCON to knacker the whole squad up good style! So, for Moyes to justify his mega wages (which I?m confident he can do), he needs to get the focus right to get stuck right into a long, long run of form in the league and FA Cup. Can and the lads pull it off? We don?t know of course, but if we can get behind em like we did on Saturday then together we can get there... COYB! Bring on the notlob for starters...
18 Posted 28/10/2008 at 16:56:25
19 Posted 28/10/2008 at 17:18:44
The worst mistake ever made by a human being? Quite possibly! Fucking gutted.
20 Posted 28/10/2008 at 17:27:50
21 Posted 28/10/2008 at 17:31:20
The second half showing has inspired such positivety amongst the fans and the club generally it would be criminal to let it slip backwards.
COYB!!
22 Posted 28/10/2008 at 18:02:11
23 Posted 28/10/2008 at 18:12:26
Well said.
24 Posted 28/10/2008 at 18:11:47
25 Posted 28/10/2008 at 18:12:46
26 Posted 28/10/2008 at 18:16:28
27 Posted 28/10/2008 at 18:21:28
28 Posted 28/10/2008 at 18:25:54
29 Posted 28/10/2008 at 18:39:01
30 Posted 28/10/2008 at 19:29:11
31 Posted 28/10/2008 at 19:49:12
32 Posted 28/10/2008 at 21:35:15
33 Posted 28/10/2008 at 22:18:58
34 Posted 28/10/2008 at 22:48:59
However, i?ve always thought you would shoot yourself in the foot by not seeing any of the good that happens ? just as Dodd refuses to see any negatives.
However, i must say that this is a pleasant suprise. Great stuff, Tony ? glad to have you back.
35 Posted 28/10/2008 at 22:55:21
I am in complete shock by what I have just read.
I am speachless
36 Posted 28/10/2008 at 22:41:39
And the petulance of Ronaldo when Neville went into him. The audacity of Phil Neville to go into the World's Greatest Player who does he think he is? And then Ferdinand running across to get our Nev sent off. Well, good on ya Phil you changed the game. Maybe he is Captain Marvel after all.
But in all seriousness it was a fantastic performance. Any coincidence that we play so much better when we arent hoofing the ball. Hopefully Moyes has finally learned. If he has then I think we will be alright. But thats if!
Our next 2 games are massive and we really should be winning both. If we do pick up maximum points we could push on, but if we don't then we will struggle. Our next 6 games could give us the break we need to get into the top 8.
And finally, I must admit Fellaini is winning me over. I couldn't believe it when we forked out £15 million for him but he's really starting to pick up and this could potentially be one of our greatest ever signings. The future could be bright. COYB
37 Posted 29/10/2008 at 01:34:37
38 Posted 29/10/2008 at 01:28:01
I know, I know negative but it would have been good to watch.
Anyway, Tony, I couldn?t agree more with your assessment and well done for giving credit when it is due.
39 Posted 29/10/2008 at 01:59:09
Welcome back, Tony (although you?d never really left, had ya?).
COYB!!!
40 Posted 29/10/2008 at 02:22:39
41 Posted 29/10/2008 at 06:50:48
For the first time I can say that I am proud to have Phil Neville as captain of Everton Football Club.
Ever since his transfer I had the impression that he would rather be playing for United. That impression was booted, along with C Ronaldo, out of Goodison Park last Saturday.
I hope we will be able to look back at "that tackle" as the incident that ignited our season.
42 Posted 29/10/2008 at 07:49:18
43 Posted 29/10/2008 at 07:47:09
I agree totally, that I’d rather see us play like that regardless of the result..... After seeing us bend over for Arsenal in the 2nd half, I never saw this coming.
Tonight’s game is really a big one now, I was hoping that we’d see an improvement against Bolton tonight, but we started 45 minutes earlier than expected!
I’m still worried, after all that has come before this season, but if the players needed a good lift before a must-win game, that second half was it.
Let’s just hope they don’t bugger it up tonight!!!
44 Posted 29/10/2008 at 10:23:51
Well said Tony.
Credit where it’s due. I thought the team did well. Some confidence returning and good football being played. Long may it continue.
COYB
45 Posted 29/10/2008 at 10:43:34
I don’t mind not winning, I just want that attitude for 90 mins EVERY game.
NB: So anything less than that attitude at Bolton and they can f....
46 Posted 29/10/2008 at 12:15:02
Some of us have a very simple attitude:
When we play well, we say so and why. When we play shite, we say so and why.
We point out what Moyes does well, we point out when he fucks up.
This makes neither pro nor anti-Moyes, we just describe what we see.
I’ve got no vested interested in blindly defending any manager or player - I want the best for Everton.
Is it really that difficult to understand?
47 Posted 29/10/2008 at 13:36:47
Great stuff....... see you all later tonight.
48 Posted 29/10/2008 at 13:48:10
Long may Everton continue providing Tony with reasons to be positive.
50 Posted 29/10/2008 at 14:26:45
I am reserving judgement myself.
Why? Because Moyes has shown in the past that he changes a winning and at times pass-and-move formation for his favoured 'direct' style of play. Otherwise known as hoofball.
Time will tell, he has no excuses as we have shown what we are capable of. If we revert then more fool him.
52 Posted 29/10/2008 at 17:49:26
53 Posted 29/10/2008 at 17:27:58
54 Posted 29/10/2008 at 18:43:33
55 Posted 29/10/2008 at 18:44:27
56 Posted 30/10/2008 at 10:32:50
Bet you are back to your negative self after last night's Bolton game though.
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1 Posted 28/10/2008 at 14:18:35
I hope Marshy doesnt jinx the turn of form...