Toffees Hammered: Defending Big Sam

The progress continued under Big Sam with a decent win against a very hard to beat Everton side, a result that would have been more comprehensive but for an uncharacteristic error from Shay Given.

Now it’s worth bearing in mind that the Toffeemen are no mugs and, while they did have a hard European game in midweek we could, and should, have scored more than the three goals we got.

This team of ours is being gradually moulded by the manager into an efficient, battling unit that will be there or thereabouts when the Euro places are decided at the end of the season.

That will be a massive improvement on recent years, and for the turnaround in attitude alone, Big Sam deserves both respect and time to do the job.

Unfortunately, certain sections of our support think otherwise, apparently because we get crowds of fifty thousand this somehow means that we should also be the greatest team on earth, never let a goal in, and score ten every week.

Certain people need to give their heads a shake and realise that when we approached Allardyce, Newcastle United were a mid to lower table team, the whole club was in disarray and we were allegedly close to bankruptcy.

He is without doubt the best manager we could have got at that time and his restructuring of the whole backroom setup is exactly what is needed… (not to mention the good housekeeping he performed in getting rid of some of the costlier, yet less productive, players quickly).

When Obafemi Martins was substituted on Sunday for Michael Owen the booing and jeering that followed was unacceptable.

Nobody knows for sure what the reasoning was, whether it was because Martins should have stayed on or the ridiculous notion that Owen was just getting himself fit for England again, either way it was pathetic. The manager made a decision, that decision won us the game, and that’s what he’s paid for.

When we’re underperforming then make your feelings known after the match if you have to, but when it’s delicately balanced and the players need encouragement, then please just do your job as a supporter and make sure we get the points.

With that we come to Emre, he’s not a player I’ve ever admired too much. As a leftover from the diabolical Souness era he’s always flattered to deceive, he looks like he should be brilliant but never quite takes control of a game.

However, his cameo on Sunday and the celebrations that followed his goal suggest that maybe big Sam is working his magic on a disaffected player again…here’s hoping.

Anyway, I’ll leave you with one last thought, our new owner is a southern boy and supposed to be a bit of recluse but I think he may just become a bit of an adopted geordie.

Wor Mike was in the directors box again for the match and wearing a short sleeved toon top..in October - Nice one Mr. Ashley. Howay the lads…