Recently by Greg O'Keeffe

EVERTON'S pre-season walkabout down under may not have progressed beyond a gentle stroll yet, but victory in Melbourne suggested there are plenty of reasons to be cheerful for the new season.

The Toffees sealed the second victory of their Australian tour with a comfortable if unspectacular display against new A-league side Melbourne Heart.

David Moyes used the opportunity of this second warm-up game to hand debuts to Portugese striker Joao Silva and ex-Leeds United forward Jermaine Beckford, and used all but one of his nine-strong substitute bench.

HIS European dream about to take flight one minute, and then indefinitely grounded again the next, David Moyes knows exactly how those stranded holidaymakers across Europe feel.

But it's not a cloud of volcanic ash which is frustrating the Toffees' manager, rather those infuriating draws which have cost him dearly in this intriguing end to the season, as the Premier League table fluctuates more than the FTSE.

THE sight of the LA Galaxys youth team taking their seats at Goodison was an arch reminder of what Everton are missing as their bid for European football stutters at its crucial stage.

The youngsters were guests at the game against struggling West Ham, as a gesture of thanks for Galaxys part in allowing Landon Donovan to spend three months in Merseyside.

And during the ensuing 90 minutes just how acutely David Moyes side have missed the USA captain was put into sharp focus.

EVERTONIANS need no excuse to sit back and reflect fondly on the Eighties.

The decade that spawned the most successful side in their history will always be a favourite.

Not everything about that era was perfect though. Bosses at Wolves' Molineux Ground reminded everyone of that by recruiting soul singer Jaki Graham to commit grievous bodily harm on 28,000 ear drums with a rendition of her 1986 hit "Set Me Free" on the pitch before Saturday's game.

HAVING been to Hull and back earlier this season, Everton had a heavenly performance from Mikel Arteta to thank for banishing any lingering painful memories of this campaign's worst display.

Mention Phil Brown's Hull to any Everton fan today and their reaction will be one of pleasure not pain, and that is largely due to the best little Spaniard they know.

When the Blues lost 3-2 at the bitterly cold KC stadium in November, conceding three in a nightmare first half, few could have predicted the return leg would be so joyously different in the early spring sunshine.

IT WAS a night when Evertonians, particularly those who had flown to Lisbon, would take any positives they could get.

As their last hopes of silverware in the 2009/10 season convulsed and then dropped dead in front of them, Blues could at least take some heart from the sight of another returning hero.

When Philippe Senderos felt his knee in a tackle and was forced to limp off with 52 minutes of the tie against Sporting on Thursday gone, David Moyes asked Phil Jagielka to return to action for the first time in 10 long months.

PROGRESS does not automatically come at a cost, it just seems that way if you follow Everton.

Despite being ravaged by widespread injury, the Blues have turned a potential campaign of mediocrity into another stab at challenging for European qualification.

That spirited recovery from an appalling start to the season was notably assisted by the fine form of their emerging midfield enigma Marouane Fellaini.

IT IS a rare and magical ability which is almost as hard to explain as it is satisfying for Everton supporters.

At just 5"9, Timothy Joel Cahill has no right to make such gravity-defying leaps and dominate such physically superior centre halves.

Yet the Australian does it, time and time again. And somehow, despite his reputation for potency in the box, some defenders still leave him unattended.

IN his programme notes, Everton skipper Phil Neville called for patience and stressed that good performances are not as important in the FA Cup as simply winning.

He was right. But unfortunately Everton managed neither on a dispiriting afternoon, which saw them slump out of a competition which gave everyone so much to smile about last year.

The Blues' display, especially in the first half, was the polar opposite of the pulse-quickening, expressive football which put Manchester City to the sword last weekend.

DAVID MOYES and the FA Cup were only casual acquaintances until last season's passionate affair.

Before then the Everton manager, by his own admission, never had much of an affinity for the competition. He barely had a run in it as a player, and then there are the painful memories of two upsets in his current job which still cause his blood to turn cold.

So he could be forgiven for having given up on the romance, after the fickle hussy left him standing at the altar in May and ran off with a flashy cockney geezer with a bulging wallet.