ON THE banks of the built-up River Wear it was perhaps fitting Everton’s industry won them a valuable point on Saturday.

For long spells it looked as though the Goodison machine had once more broken down but whipped into shape by their taskmaster David Moyes, everything went full steam ahead in a powerful second half performance.

In many ways this Boxing Day clash, with the north-east’s industrial heartland as a backdrop, was typical of Everton under the tutelage of their manager; reverting to basics in the second half coupled with their unwavering resolve helped carve out a much warranted point.

Not that everything on Saturday ran like a well oiled machine.

Their dominance over a limited Sunderland side would only yield one goal and frustrated Everton into a fourth consecutive draw in the Premier League – extending their winless run to seven matches and leaving them still two points outside the drop zone on Saturday evening.

And as much as Moyes would take great solace from the fighting spirit his side showed once more, he must have concerns over the inability to convert the majority of possession into chances of significance.

Indeed, as we saw against Birmingham City in their previous game of deadlock, Everton horded possession but being able to produce little with it, the latest travail which hurts Moyes’ side is a lack of killer instinct – hopefully the imminent arrival of Landon Donovan is the key to solving the riddle.

But the weekend’s revival would ultimately have to be met with a differing approach and spearheading the charge was Marouane Fellaini; his vicious strike six minutes from time after Sunderland failed to deal with Tony Hibbert’s cross restored parity and probably a sense of footballing justice as Moyes’ men were deserving of sharing the points at a packed Stadium of Light.

The Belgian is fast becoming something of a mercurial figure for Everton and divides opinion like no other player in the current squad, but was a major source of satisfaction for manager Moyes on the day after Christmas.

Looking aimless one minute yet unplayable the next; that the 22-year-old was hailed by his manager after the game as the country’s form midfielder is telling of his influence in the second half on Boxing Day, though the latest praise will no doubt stoke up the fire of debate once more.

Yet even if you stand on the less complimentary side of the great Fellaini debate you would be hard pressed to deny the game, and Everton, needed what the midfielder brought after the interval – leadership and direction.

Club captain Phil Neville, an unused substitute, bellowed instruction and encouragement from the sidelines throughout the game but even the inspirational leader could do little to improve a tepid opening 45 minutes.