It was a truly memorable win, made even more memorable because Everton had to play the last hour of the game with 10 men after Kevin Kilbane was sent off. It was a slow start to the game with Everton adopting the 4-5-1 formation, which served them so well in the 2004/5 season. Everton were content with keeping it tight but nearly went behind when Gary Naysmith hit his own bar with a poor, but extremely lucky clearance. Kevin Kilbane could count himself unlucky with his sending off as his first booking was harsh, when you consider it was his first foul and he didn't touch Lee. However his second booking was pure stupidity. Knowing that Mark Halsey was happy to produce a card, and having been warned since his first booking, Kilbane needlessly slid in on Lee leaving Halsey no choice but to send him off.
The Everton of early last season would have crumbled and given up the ghost when Kilbane trooped off after just 30minutes. But since the turn of the year there is a new determination in the Everton team, and with Johnson up front there is much more of a belief in the camp. They restricted Spurs to just a couple of half chances in the remainder of the first half, a deflected Dawson shot and a long range effort from Davids, which failed to trouble Howard.
The second half was a completely different affair and you could have easily thought it was Everton that had the extra man. The tireless Andy Johnson chased a lost cause but somehow managed to get hold of the ball and win his side a free kick. Mikel Arteta put the ball in the perfect area for Joleon Lescott, whose header hit Callum Davenport before trickling into the net. This gave both the Everton players and Everton fans the belief that they could finally end the White Hart Lane jinx. If everyone was expecting a 10men behind the ball and hold out for the win performance, they were wrong. Everton played some excellent counter attacking football leaving Spurs with no answer.
The second goal was fully deserved and it was a goal of the highest order. It started on the edge of the Everton area, Osman broke up the play before playing a delightful one-two with Arteta. Osman then drove down the pitch out-muscling Edgar Davids not once, but twice before playing a delightful pass out wide to Phil Neville. Neville then put in the perfect cross for Andy Johnson to attack, the England striker didn't dissappoint and put the ball in the back of the net to send the travelling Evertonians into raptures.
Spurs didn't have an answer and couldn't muster any real threat until the dying moments. First a Jermaine Defoe shot went wide, then Robbie Keane tried a flick that went horribly wrong before the anonymous Berbatov saw his weak header easily saved by Tim Howard. The resiliant, brave and impressive Everton easily claimed the 2-0 victory, and it was fully deserved. There have not been many draws at this ground in the last 21 years and the defeats have all been extremely painful. A couple of 3-2's, a 4-3, a 5-2 and a 4-1 in recent years have left Evertonians wondering whether a win at White Hart Lane would ever come. They have been dreaming of this moment for a long time and come the final whistle you could forgive the buyont blues for thinking it might have been a dream.
After leaving White Hart Lane in 1985 the name on everyones lips was Gary Lineker. Lineker went on to score 40 goals for Everton that season and was the leading goalscorer in the World Cup. Leaving White Hart Lane on Saturday, there is a new name on everyobdy's lips, a new hero for Evertonians to believe in.
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