Football: April Fools Day but the Blues aren't laughing; Everton pegged back twice by doomed side.

Byline: By IAN DOYLE at Goodison Park

DAVID MOYES claimed not to have heard the smattering of boos that greeted the final whistle at Goodison on Saturday.

But the Everton manager couldn't fail to notice how his team contrived to jeopardise their hopes of European qualification at the precise moment they should have been reinforcing them.

April fools? Sadly, nobody in Blue was laughing.

The last-gasp win at Sunderland on New Year's Eve provided the springboard from which their excellent 2006 Premiership form was built.

And while Saturday's hugely disappointing slump against the same opponents - Everton twice surrendering the lead and fortunate not to lose the game during injury time - far from signals the end of their Uefa Cup aspirations, it makes matters that little bit more difficult.

Despite the fillip of Leon Osman's early goal, a worryingly lethargic Everton never really sparked into life and Sunderland were thoroughly deserving of their point, their first in six weeks and only their 11th of the season.

A derby hangover? Perhaps. Certainly, the verve, vigour and enterprise that has been prominent in Everton's play since the turn of the year, though largely absent at Anfield last week, again made only a fleeting appearance at the weekend.

Nevertheless, Moyes' side created enough chances against Sunderland's porous defence to have won the game.

Strange, then, that for substantial spells of proceedings, particularly during the first half, they were second best to their Championship-bound visitors. "We were complacent," proffered Moyes, correctly.

Those jeering supporters' frustration at the result will only have been intensified by the fact on the two occasions Sunderland drew level, the home side responded by instantly increasing the tempo.

James McFadden's strike came 10 minutes after Jonathan Stead had equalised' there wasn't quite enough time to restore their advantage after Rory Delap's 80th-minute header.

What is it about Goodison Park and Stead?

The Sunderland striker had infamously not scored since arriving at the Stadium of Light at the start of the season, yet it was apt he should end that 29-game drought at this venue.

Never the most prolific, Stead has netted only five goals in his last 68 outings - and three of those have come at Everton.

Eighth place and the likely Intertoto Cup place that would bring now, seems the most attainable target for Everton.

With just six games remaining, there is precious little margin for / error and Moyes' side cannot afford to fritter away any more points from their remaining three home assignments this term.

Mikel Arteta was again missed, although thankfully his second-half substitute appearance suggests the Basque will be available for the run-in. In his absence, too many Everton players were below the standards they have set themselves in recent times. James Beattie, out of sorts at Anfield, again oiled to limited effect, McFadden was infuriatingly inconsistent while Simon Davies was understandably some way off the pace during his first start in five weeks. Only Osman, busy and industrious throughout, reached anywhere near his level, which made his team-mates' decision during the second half to seemingly starve him of possession all the more bewildering.

Of greater concern to Moyes will be his side's leakiness in defence.

Having recorded four shut-outs in five games, Everton have now not kept a clean sheet in any of their last six games, of which only two have been won.

And while goalkeeper Richard Wright was not at fault for either of the goals on Saturday, his lack of confidence and understanding with his defenders was painfully clear, at one point leading to a frank exchange of views with Joseph Yobo after a mix-up at the back.

As Moyes insisted before the game, Wright is deserving of an extended run in the team to prove his worth after showing such patience in the face of Nigel Martyn's fine form.

But unless he can quickly eradicate the errors that have held back his career at Goodison, it would be no surprise to see Iain Turner given a run-out between the sticks before the end of the season.

Yobo, at the centre of increasing transfer speculation, was making only his second appearance since returning from the African Cup of Nations in February.

And with Arsenal poised to make a summer bid for his services and the player showing no inclination of signing a new contract, it could well be one of the Nigerian's last appearances for the club.

Moyes is loath to lose his better players, and although he claimed to be not particularly bothered by Yobo's contract situation, privately he must know it will be difficult to hold on to the centre-back should Arsene Wenger come calling.

Matters had appeared fairly straightforward for Everton on Saturday when they went ahead with their first real attack in the fifth minute with a goal started and finished by Osman.

After a bout of sustained pressure, the diminutive midfielder took possession and fed Gary Naysmith out on the left.

The left-back swung in a cross that Beattie prodded across the face of the goal to the far post where Davies' scuffed shot was flicked in by Osman's left foot.

Everton's fans sat back and awaited a goals feast. The problem was, so did their team, and Sunderland scrapped their way back into the game with a number of long-range efforts, from which one by Stead, palmed behind by a stretching Wright, brought them a soft equaliser on 16 minutes.

Grant Leadbitter's corner from the left was flicked on by Chris Brown to the far post where Stead, having brushed off a tame challenge from Beattie, gleefully side-footed home.

The striker raced off to celebrate, while Beattie copped an earful from Alan Stubbs, the former Sunderland man jeered by the visiting support throughout.

Everton responded by regaining the lead 10 minutes later. Phil Neville, skipper for the day with David Weir on the bench, launched a long throw-in into the area from the left and, after Tim Cahill had caused confusion despite missing his attempted flick-on, McFadden t away from Gary Breen and volleyed past Sunderland goalkeeper Kelvin Davis from six yards.

Once again, Everton seemed satisfied that was enough, and before the break offered only a Cahill volley that was parried by Davis. Five minutes after the interval a Cahill cross from the right was cleared across his own goal by Danny Collins and McFadden headed against the crossbar with the, goal gaping.

The Scot then had a decent shout for a penalty after being felled by Justin Hoy-te, but Everton's complacency allowed Sunderland to reassert themselves once more in a keenly fought yet clean game in which there were, believe it or not, no bookings.

Naysmith did well to block Stead's shot midway through the half, but with 10 minutes remaining the visitors inevitably drew level when poor closing down allowed Dean Whitehead to curl a cross in from the right and Delap beat Tony Hibbert to the ball to head home.

Again Everton spluttered into life, Neville's goalbound shot blocked, Cahill headed at Davis and Osman shooting wide. But only the width of the post prevented Everton from falling from an embarrassing defeat in the final minute after Delap's blockbusting 30-yard effort gave Wright no chance.

When Moyes was expecting his players to kick for home, so they have begun to falter. A first ever back-to-back top-half Premiership finish remains very much a possibility, but Everton will have to quickly regain their form of a few weeks ago if they are going to improve on that.

Everton never sparked into life and Sunderland were thoroughly deserving of their point - Ian Doyle

EVERTON 2

Osman 5, McFadden 26

SUNDERLAND 2

Stead 16, Delap 80

EVERTON (4-4-2): Wright' Hibbert, Yobo, Stubbs, Naysmith (Ferguson 86)' Davies (Arteta 62), Cahill, Neville, Osman' Beattie, McFadden. Subs: Turner, Weir, Carsley.

SUNDERLAND (4-4-2): Davis' Hoyte, Breen, Collins, McCartney' Lawrence (Le Tallec 69), Leadbitter, Whitehead, Delap' Brown (Murphy 75), Stead (Smith 84).

REFEREE: Mark Halsey ATT: 38,093.

NEXT GAME: Charlton (a), Prem, Saturday 3pm

MAN OF THE MATCH...

A busy player, not least during the first half

MAGIC MOMENT...

Fancy footwork from Osman was a brief respite

CAPTION(S):

James McFadden fires in Everton's second goal beyond Sunderland skipper Gary Breen, former Buckley defender Danny Collins and goalkeeper Kelvin Davis' Leon Osman (top) following his fifth-minute opener, while Sunderland (inset) celebrate Jon Stead's equaliser and goalkeeper Richard Wright (above) looks uneasy