Daily Post

Mission Impossible Ringing so True As Moyes's Men Wilt

Chelsea 2 Everton 1 AS David Moyes held court with the assembled media after an afternoon of heartbreaking disappointment, his flow was interrupted by the chirping of an instantly recognisable ringtone.

Everton: Howard ; Ratings

EVERTON: HOWARD: Good distribution and given no chance with Didier Drogba's equaliser but could possibly have done better with Frank Lampard's winner. 6 TONY HIBBERT: Commitment and combative spirit will only get you so far and against the class of Florent Malouda was completely out of his depth. With little help from Leon Osman he was booked early on before being hauled off at half-time. 4 LEIGHTON BAINES: Limited Nicholas Anelka's threat but offered little in attack and his supply line, so ...

Everton Growing in Stature - Neville ; Cup Run Shows How Far Club has Come Insists Captain

PHIL NEVILLE admits FA Cup final defeat to Chelsea has shown how far Everton remain off regularly challenging for major honours. David Moyes's side had held the Londoners to two goalless draws during the Premier League season.

Chelsea Petr Cech: Was ; Ratings

CHELSEA PETR CECH: Was wellbeaten for the Everton opener and showed some big-match nerves during the early stages of the game. Commanding when needed though and became more of a spectator as the match wore on. 6.

Cahill Calling for Wise Buys in Market

TIM CAHILL believes Everton must move wisely in the transfer market this summer to ensure they build on a season of further progress. The Goodison outfit suffered the heartbreak of FA Cup final defeat when they lost 2-1 to Chelsea on Saturday at Wembley.

Next Step Forward Could Be Hardest of All for Everton

DAVID MOYES is acutely aware the next step could be the hardest one of all for Everton. Despite working under severe financial restrictions compared to the clubs around them, the Goodison Park outfit have firmly established themselves as a top-six outfit.

Why Moyes Now Needs His Prediction to Come True

BEFORE his side's FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United, manager David Moyes declared: "This Everton team will win a trophy soon." Were these the words of a manager who wanted to curb expectation levels ahead of a game against the Premier League champions followed by a Wembley final against Chelsea or Arsenal - or a belief of a man who has moulded a side of dedicated professionals determined to make their mark in an era when the game is dominated by a few wealthy institutions? Surely Mo...

The Moments That Mattered

25 seconds: A Marouane Fellaini knock-down finds Louis Saha on the edge of the penalty area and he dispatches the ball into the net to put Everton in front with the fastest-ever FA Cup final goal. Seven minutes: Booking for Tony Hibbert for a foul on Florent Malouda.

Ancelotti Must Be Given Time - Ballack

MICHAEL BALLACK has urged the Chelsea board to give Carlo Ancelotti time to settle in after agreeing to stay at Stamford Bridge for another year. The Germany captain has not yet signed his one-year extension option but insists he will be a Chelsea player next season.

Response to Historic Goal Thrills Hiddink

CHELSEA manager Guus Hiddink was delighted with how his team responded to conceding the fastest goal in FA Cup final history by hitting back to defeat Everton 2-1 but admits he didn't even see Louis Saha's 25-second strike fly past Petr Cech. Having secured a trophy for Stamford Bridge owner Roman Abramovich, the much-travelled Dutchman will not return to Moscow to continue in his full-time role as Russian national team coach but his view for Everton's opener was obstructed by Wembley officials.

Early Goal Wasn't the Best Start for Us, Admits Fellaini

MAROUANE FELLAINI admits Everton may have paid the price for their record-breaking start at Wembley. David Moyes's side raced into the lead after just 25 seconds of their FA Cup final against Chelsea on Saturday through a sensational Louis Saha strike.

Team Didn't Do Enough - but Fans Certainly Did

IF the FA Cup was handed to the club whose supporters wanted it most, then Everton would have spent yesterday afternoon parading the trophy through the city. Just as in the semi-final against Manchester United, the Blues arrived in London in their thousands and made themselves heard. Even the utterly random special guest, Kofi Annan, must have thought, "This lot really look up for it today," as the Evertonians got behind their team well before the kick-off. And the for mer Secretary-General o...

Duff Keen to Stay and Help Newcastle

NEWCASTLE star Damien Duff has admitted some of his teammates at St James' Park did not care if the club got relegated to the Championship. Duff, who is prepared to stay to get the club back into the Premier League, wants Alan Shearer to be appointed manager and believes the man who took them down clearly knows which players were not putting in a shift to keep them in the top flight.

Mancini Agent Dismisses Sunderland Link

ROBERTO MANCINI'S agent has dismissed suggestions his client is set to be named manager of Sunderland. Mancini was quoted yesterday afternoon as saying he had been offered the chance to take over at the Stadium of Light, and hinted he would relish the opportunity to return to football after a 12- month absence. But his agent, Giorgio De Giorgis, said the Wearsiders had not been in touch.

Miller Doubly Happy After Hampden Success

Rangers ................... 1 Falkirk ..................... 0 KENNY MILLER hopes he will finally be accepted by the fans after helping bring success back to Rangers.

Moore Spells It Out As Kay Quits for Terriers

MANAGER Ronnie Moore admitted Tranmere could do little to prevent losing skipper Antony Kay to League One rivals Huddersfield Town over the weekend. Yorkshireman Kay, who became a free agent this summer, joined the Terriers on a two-year contract.

Wilkin Believes League Will Thrive Again in Ne

Gateshead ............... 6 St Helens............... 66 ST HELENS forward Jon Wilkin believes the sport can flourish in the North East again following his side's Carnegie Challenge Cup clash with Gateshead.

Chambers Is Still Winning Despite Ban

DWAIN CHAMBERS i s adamant a ban by Euromeetings promoters will not interrupt his Worl d Championship preparations following his sprint double at the Papaflessia International Meeting in Kalamata on Saturday. Chambers recorded the fastest 100 metres time by a European this summer of 10.06 seconds and stormed to victory over 200m in 20.58secs an hour and a half later at the Greek venue.

Battling Bulldogs Beat Under-Fire Vikings

Batley Bulldogs . . . . 40 Widnes Vikings . . . . . 34 WIDNES Vikings crashed to their fourth defeat in five games as they threw away a handy lead at Batley and were hit with a deadly sucker punch.

Mixed Emotions for Smith As Wolves Edge It

Hull KR.............. 24 Warrington . . . . . . . . . . 25 WARRINGTON coach Tony Smith was delighted with the result but disappointed by the performance after his side pulled off a stunning 25-24 Carnegie Challenge Cup quarter-final win over Hull KR.