IF such a thing as the perfect day exists, Sunday was probably just about it for me and my family. We were fortunate enough to be invited on to the train that Bill Kenwright had laid on especially for current members of the first team, their families, a certain number of supporters and a selection of former players. Duncan McKenzie, Dave Hickson, Kevin Sheedy and Barry Horne were in one carriage and the reception we got on the train and when we made the short walk from Wembley Central to the ground was quite overwhelming. You got the feeling that something significant was in the air, given the way all the Evertonians were beforehand and, thank goodness, that’s exactly how it proved; I haven’t stopped smiling since our place in the FA Cup Final was secured. Let me tell you, though, the lads who faced Manchester United had it much easier than the thousands of Blues in the stands; only after sitting through the torture of that penalty shootout did I appreciate what my wife, Amanda, experienced when I was playing. It was incredible and had everything that you could want from a semi-final; tension, suspense and drama, it made for enthralling viewing and the effort the lads put in was absolutely outstanding. Everywhere you looked, there were candidates for Man of the Match; Phil Neville was immense against his old club and showed great class in the way he reacted after scoring his penalty; the defenders excelled and Tim Cahill ran himself to a standstill. Then Tim Howard took charge in the shootout, making two priceless stops from Rio Ferdinand and Dimitar Berbatov, a player who is the antithesis of everything our current squad is about. Sure, there will be some who quibble that United never played their strongest side and I do have to admit that it was a huge relief to see neither Cristiano Ronaldo nor Wayne Rooney anywhere near the substitutes’ bench. But who cares? We held our nerve when it mattered and our reward is another fabulous day out on May 30; nobody in their right minds could say we don’t deserve it when you look at the teams we have faced to get there. Being part of semi-final day makes me all the more determined to get back for the final but we will have to see what happens. Don’t expect a horror show THE last time Everton experienced a high similar to the one on Sunday, the game which followed ended up being a complete disaster. I am talking, of course, about the 7-0 drubbing Arsenal inflicted on us after we had qualified for the Champions League but don’t expect a repeat of that when we travel to Stamford Bridge tomorrow night. Though we had a hard game against Manchester United, David Moyes still has scope to make a couple of changes and there is every chance that young men like Dan Gosling and Jack Rodwell will have a run out at some point, and Jo will return. The difference, though, between Highbury and here is that we still have something to play for; this is not an excuse but four years ago we could neither go up nor down and that possibly crept into our approach. Now you only hear talk of great professionalism at the club and the manager will not relent on the squad; he will be desperate to overhaul Aston Villa, and win the Cup. Great to see vaughan back AMONG the many great stories that emerged from the semi-final was the return to senior action of James Vaughan. He was always a young lad with whom I got on well and I’ve never doubted his ability to make it but he has endured some of the most wretched luck you could imagine with injuries. So to see him buzz around Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic for the last 15 minutes and thump home one of the penalties gave me great delight and I just hope he can get a clear run at things for the remainder of the campaign. Vaughany has much to offer Everton’s team, his pace, ability to score and enthusiasm being admirable qualities. And all being well, he’ll get himself a couple of goals before the curtain is drawn on this season.
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