THANKS to the international break, Everton FC return to action at the weekend after what seems like an age since the Merseyside derby debacle.

The break may well have worked in the Blues’ favour, helping to temper the sense of injustice after Jack Rodwell’s undeserved red card.

Happily, the young Everton star is back in contention after the FA saw commonsense for once and rescinded his punishment.

Incredibly, though, referee Martin Atkinson will not face any demotion from the Premier League. He put in one of the worst refereeing displays ever witnessed, but still picks up his wages as a professional official and just carries on. Nice work if you can get it.

Equally surprising is that Everton now refer to Stamford Bridge – in cliché tabloid language – as a happy-hunting-ground. The Blues results have been so inconsistent over David Moyes’s tenure I am amazed any away ground in the country can be described as ‘happy’ for Everton.

Amazingly though, we have not been beaten in the Premier League at Stamford Bridge since April, 2006.

And of course the West London ground played host to last season’s highlight, a dramatic penalty shoot-out victory in the FA Cup – with all that hard work later lashed down the drain thanks to a dreary 1-0 home defeat to Reading in the next round.