BOOING

SOMETHING’S changed hasn’t it? It’s hard to put your finger on, but we’re just not buzzing like we were.
By ‘we’re’ I mean the team and the fans. It’s impossible not to notice the subtle sea-change since Fiorentina.

I’m definitely not criticising the fans who made the trip to Craven Cottage, they are well exonerated, but the team certainly didn’t show up.
The tiredness excuse was out before Steve Bennett (top ref, always liked him) had the whistle to his lips.
So, even grudgingly accepting that ‘tired legs’ led to that particularly gift horse being gurned at, what about West Ham?
Another fixture against a London outfit we should have had the smarts to beat and bank the points for The Race.
Again we slipped up, and although there was some decent spells in the first half and yet more off-side injustice, we were generally poor.
For the second game on the bounce our best player’s head was down and Arteta’s passing poor, and it didn’t help losing a clearly injured Cahill so early.
If you want to talk excuses, then squad-size is one where the apologists have a point. Ours is obviously too small and being stretched now to its limits.
Only The Yak came out of Saturday with any real credit. It was bizarre, even form players like Jagielka went into melt-down when cool heads and steely resolve were needed.
Both league displays have been a million miles from the guts and almost-glory of Fiorentina at home.
Back to the fans, and I’ve heard a lot of criticism for the booing after West Ham and the muted atmosphere throughout.
OK it wasn’t the best atmosphere and booing doesn’t help but I can certainly understand the frustration after watching that.
Let’s be honest too - most of the booing was at the team and not Halsey.
Some will argue that season’s crop have performed excellently and we should politely avert our eyes and clap regardless when they threaten to let themselves down.
But I think the booing comes, in part, from a recognition of how good this side are and therefore anger that they are letting themselves lose the last chance of palpable success (fourth place).
We should all accept that Goodison is an eccentric and contrary bugger. We’ll never churn out white-noise every game or roar constant Pompey-style positive codas for 90 minutes when we’re being sold a stinker.
Goodison just isn’t like that. It can throb to its foundations and win games - we all know that....Man United 1-0, Villareal pre-match, Blackburn down to ten men, and Fiorentina home this season to name but a few.
But it’s too easy an answer to have a pop at us. On WSAG today, Greg Murphy recalls once being told by a club official, “Our fans are crap”, after a particularly turgid Sunday game.
Greg writes, ‘But he wasn't just talking about one match, though, and he went on to allege that us Evertonians have a long-term problem and in turn it doesn't help our on-pitch fortunes.
‘In fact, getting back to Kharkiv night, tannoy man famously declared, "C'mon, it's a European night, make some noise!"
‘I half expected him to add: "You wouldn't get this at Anfield." It’s obviously true that atmospheres are different either side of the Park, just as both sets of fans have their own traits and peculiarities.
The Evertonian critics, I hope the fella Greg was talking to was not a blue from Merseyside, will get their collective eye wiped on Sunday.
They’ll hear us loud and clear at Anfield. Regardless of the result, if the blues show up and play to their potential, the fans will also respond at Goodison the following weekend for Derby County and Kinky 'Car Bonnet' Paul Jewell.

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