Hope is the lifeblood of any football fan.
The hope of a win, of a cup run, of a trophy. It is what drives us all and keeps us going through bleak winter nights of frustration and questionable decisions and last-minute defeats. But that hope - that things will improve and the future will be better - is what brings us back. It is what inspired the return of the coach welcome at Goodison Park ahead of the crucial game with Newcastle United and the electric atmosphere inside and outside the ground that carried through well into the game: The feeling that this season is not over, maybe Everton can escape relegation again.
Against the backdrop of another wretched season after a summer of what now seem like increasingly empty commitments to do better, the display Blues supporters put on before and during the game was truly impressive.
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That magnificent support was not enough, however. A dismal second-half collapse, the third at Goodison Park this year so far and the second in consecutive home games, leaves this club on the precipice of disaster.
The fans, however special, can only do so much. That they were able to put on such a performance one more time is testament to their love for Everton and their hope that better is possible.
The contrast with those who run the club could not be more stark. For months, as the Blues have sunk deeper into the abyss, supporters have been desperate for something to cling on to - an explanation, a sign, some sense that those in positions of power at the Liver Building and beyond understand their pain and are at least working to address it. They have largely been met with silence.
And when communication has been forthcoming, whether through forewords to the club’s latest troubling set of accounts or the extraordinary letter of chairman Bill Kenwright, the failure to show an understanding of the despair and a strategy to address it has been at best delusional, at worst disrespectful.
Frankly, those in charge do not deserve the support that is trying to rescue the club from the consequences of their leadership. After the final 20 minutes on Thursday, it is questionable whether the players do.
When the game kicked-off amid a cauldron of noise the only empty seats were in the directors box. The people most accountable for the mess facing Everton were once again absent. By the final whistle there were thousands of empty seats as a tired, drained fanbase could not bear to suffer more misery. Just like against Brighton, just like against Fulham, against Newcastle the most terrifying indictment of the Blues' predicament was the silence of the final minutes.
The situation was best encapsulated by the supporter group The 1878s, which led the movement for a coach welcome ahead of Newcastle and which has been instrumental in creating special atmospheres to try and inspire the players. It announced ahead of the game with Leicester City: “We will not be asking fans to get to their seats early or go to Finch Farm to send the team off. At this stage we feel it would be an insult to the fans as they’ve played their part without question. Instead, we’re calling for the players to now play their part. Our message is simple.”
There are still five games to go. Everton are just two points from safety. Staying up is more than possible even at this late stage and on this current trajectory. Every supporter will want Everton to survive.
But few who witnessed the closing stages on Thursday night will believe it is a probability rather than a possibility. And that, in a nutshell, is the problem.
One of the most damning failures of those who run Everton is their success at ending hope.
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