Anytime from around mid-morning last Friday you will have constantly heard the words ‘Everton and 10 point deduction’ – each time you hear it there feels a sharper sense of anger and disbelief.
This was injustice that reverberated around the football world – the FA backed by their independent (ish) panel scrutinised every in and out of Everton’s finances and decided – beyond all reasonable thinking – a ten-point deduction is necessary. 10 points. Let that sink in; it’s 3 wins and a draw just taken away in the blink of an eye and sent the blues plummeting into 19th.
Shortly after the news had broken the vultures began to circle, looking to pick from the bones of the carcass; Leeds, Leicester, Southampton and for some bizarre reason Nottingham Forest have all been credited with seeking compensation; that’ll be compensation for them not being good enough to finish outside the bottom three on their own merit yet they somehow see this as Everton’s fault. It becomes even more laughable that Leicester City actually agreed a settlement with the Football League to pay for…….FFP breaches. Some things within the football industry are so pathetic you couldn’t even make them up.
Then we have the six, these will be the ones who late in the small hours one Sunday, decided to put notice in of a breakaway Super League. Bored of the Premier League and the billions that come with it, they wanted more control, more money, and legacy fans. They drew up plans, tried to break contracts and what happened? A few measly quid fine between them. A pittance. An outrage.
Everton have been the easy target, the ones to make an example of and as the finer details emerge it beggars’ belief. According to the Daily Mail, Initially the club had been given the impression interest on loans against Bramley Moore Dock would not be taken into consideration, yet in December there was a convenient rule change, in which they decided they would include these as losses – anything to make the overall losses look a little bit worse. Let’s have it right Everton’s inept boardroom has been completely culpable for these losses, decision making at the highest level has lumbered the club in this position, but this was whole heartedly accepted and acknowledged yet this punishment does not fit the crime.
You only have to look at the social media pages to see fans of other clubs throwing their weight of support behind Evertonian’s fight for justice – fans of clubs who’ve also felt the wrath and injustice of footballing authorities down the years, they fought back and so will we.
Heading into the latest international break things had look rosy in the Everton garden, a late autumn bloom of positive results had lifted the spirits. With Everton sitting in a healthy 14th and closer to the top seven than the bottom three there a slight optimism was peering its head around the clouds.
Guile. Confidence. Determination. Never giving in. All huge components of a team who are heading in the right direction.
Although it feels like we have a relatively good record at Selhurst Park, the difference between that win on Saturday and being demolished at the same place under Benitez before Lampard’s haphazard FA Cup offering was remarkable. This isn’t an Everton who buckle because the opposition score a goal, it is a confident battling team who won’t lie down for a tummy tickling. It’s the belief that Dyche is beginning to instil, you get knocked down in football and there always people willing to throw the boot in when you are down but it’s about how you bounce back. The manner in which you respond to the knocks – under the aforementioned Laurel and Hardy of management – the players wilted embarrassingly, and the defeats piled up but there’s now a backbone and a belief to this club.
This belief and fight is also burning from the stands. An injustice has stoked the fire and it’s ready to hit back..’We shall not be moved!’
UP THE F**KIN’ TOFFEES!!