IT HASN’T been the most memorable of starts for Everton. But thanks to the transformation in results of the past week, it seems the traumas of the past few months can finally be forgotten.

Just one problem there, however – the supporters have no intention of doing that just yet.

Because lots of things are now returning to normal at Goodison Park – except Goodison Park itself.

The air may have gone decidedly colder but the stench of summer still lingers and needs extinguishing quickly.

Saturday was a perfect example of why, and it was highlighted in one small corner of the ground.

The Fulham end. As empty as Jonathan Ross’s green room it was, yet it still generated more noise than the rest of the stadium. There may only have been a little more than 200 of them but the Fulham fans were the only ones you could hear for most of the game.

It was crying out for something to get the crowd going, a repeat of the same time a week earlier when one rousing Phil Neville challenge sparked a seismic shift in the mood around the stands.

But Manchester United had Rooney, Ronaldo and Rio to bring down the red mist. Who did Fulham have?

Former Red Danny Murphy? Too peripheral. Old boys Simon Davies and Andrew Johnson? Far too inoffensive and ineffective.

It’s not that Roy Hodgson’s men weren’t competitive but the two occasions they struck the woodwork in the second period only increased the agitation and antagonism rather than spark a greater urgency in the home team’s attempts to break the dreadful deadlock.

The fact that they eventually did through Louis Saha’s late header might just help to give the supporters the same momentum that the players and manager now have. And it is considerable.

Finishing Saturday in seventh place makes a chase for Europe a very real possibility once gain.

The defensive errors that plagued the start of the season have been eliminated and it’s now four hours since the back four was last breached.

The squad is now pretty much at full strength. The uncertainty over David Moyes’s future is settled. Only Arsenal and Liverpool have beaten them in the league since August.

Good times all round. Only the fans aren’t quite buying into it yet – and they can’t be blamed one bit.