Player of the Year Phil Jagielka will miss the FA Cup final, but played as big a part as anyone in getting Everton there – here he talks Nick Smith through the thrilling route to the final

MACCLESFIELD TOWN 0 EVERTON 1 (Osman 43)

WE turned up at Macclesfield and they were the smallest changing rooms ever – we ended up getting changed at the hotel.

The pitch was half frozen and it was just a normal January Cup game, all set up for a shock result.

And because of that, I could even sense a little bit of nerves in our side because we went out at the same stage at home to Oldham last year.

But we played okay, not particularly well as they were really up for it. But thankfully Ossie pulled out a fantastic wonder goal and we saw the game out.

MACCLESFIELD: Brain, Reid, Walker, Morgan, Hessey, Bell (Yeo 78), Nat Brown, Dunfield, Jennings (Thomas 70), Evans (Rooney 89), Gritton.

EVERTON: Howard, Hibbert, Lescott, Jagielka, Baines, Osman, Neville, Arteta, Pienaar (Gosling 89), Anichebe, Cahill.

ATTENDANCE: 6,008.

LIVERPOOL 1 (Gerrard 54) EVERTON 1 (Lescott 27)

REPLAY:EVERTON 1 (Gosling 120) LIVERPOOL 0

I WAS sitting watching the draw and smiling to myself when Liverpool were the first name out and I thought ‘okay, what’s our number?’Then ‘bang!’ it came out.

But we had a hectic month with two great results against them and played them in the league as well so it felt like we were playing them in every game at that point.Everyone is going to remember Dan Gosling’s goal but I think you’ve got to remember the goal we scored in the first game as well, that was just as important.

That whole month was so mad, looking back I’m not sure which way round it was now. Was it Tim Cahill’s header to equalise at the end of the first game? No? Right, it must have been Joleon Lescott’s header at the Kop End in the first game then!Either way, that goal was just as important as Dan’s goal – those six deflections that won him goal of the season!