HARD UP off the pitch, Everton were a soft touch on it.

There would be no opening fixture victory to cushion the blow of a tumultuous week at Goodison Park but instead only the sound of Queens Park Rangers sticking the boot in.

The Loftus Road outfit rode into Merseyside on the financial storm clouds hovering around L4 and left an even greater sense of gloom in their wake.

Just when David Moyes’ men desperately needed to find the antidote to last week’s sobering news of money troubles, the players managed to leave supporters feeling short changed.

Everton and first games of the season are uneasy bedfellows but this, the side's fourth consecutive opening Premier League loss and an unwanted club first, will rank as by far the most depressing of the lot.

After a week which has allegedly seen a secretive recording of the Blue Union’s meeting with chairman Bill Kenwright made public, the tape of Saturday’s 1-0 defeat is another the club will not want to see the light of day.

It took just over half an hour for depressing inevitability to topple the hope of a new season and in a cruel twist of irony, the danger was done by a man who shares his name with a former Liverpool FC stalwart.

Tommy Smith’s well placed goal from just inside the area on Saturday was a moment created when panic filled the void where calm and formation should have been.

It was at the time Smith found space between Phil Jagielka and Sylvain Distin to collect Akos Buzsaky’s pass, before side footing beyond Tim Howard, that Everton’s players appeared burdened by the events of the past few days.