OUR Club has appointed a new Manager, or so we are led to believe by Jim White. The appointee in question would have been inconceivable until very recently.

Like many of us I guess I am still very much in shock. If indeed he does appear this evening, as we are told he will, then I will not boo, but I will also not be applauding. Stony incredulity remains the abiding emotion as we still reel from the whiplash of hitting the buffers at such speed.

So much has already been written about the whys & wherefores of the past 5 months; I am sure I can spare you the gory details.

Many questions remain nevertheless:

• How did the house catch fire & nobody in any position of authority or power did anything to contain or extinguish it until the blaze was wildly out of control?
• Why is the only solution Red Adair?
• Who called Red Adair in the first place?

Worst of all though, who thinks it’s right to blame the fans for this almighty mess?

In the eyes of some “negativity” from the fans has played a major part in getting us to this deep pile of excrement at the end of the world’s steepest water slide. It just beggars belief.

With clear divisions between Chairman & largest shareholder, called out by “pesky meddling” journalists & evidenced by the plethora of rumours/counter rumours over the last month, we as fans are expected to be united.

United behind what? We have no idea as to the direction of travel or even the mode of transport. We were sold & bought into a brave new world where nothing would be the same, however those hopes & dreams look very bleak right now.

Chickens are coming home to roost, as ambitions have crashed on the rocks.

Communication from our Club is just rank amateur at best. Fans & other key stakeholders aren’t trusted or engaged in any way. Trusted lieutenants peddle propanda messages, & anyone who asks a question or dares to criticise/suggest an alternative is slapped down.

Blaming the fans for being negative is like blaming the passengers on the Titanic for being scared when they can see the iceberg dead ahead for God’s sake!

As fans we all want what is best for our Club; we have different views, we are passionate & we really care. We are not fools, we are loyal; we want to trust but we are being pushed to (arguably beyond) the limit by the incompetence of those in authority right now.

You might have noticed one thing missing from this Blog: names (other than the unfortunately named Red Adair).

That is quite deliberate. It’s because Manager, Chairman, CEO etc are each just third person singular; transient guardians at best, as each player is a transient employee.

We, the fans, are first person plural, we’ll still be here when they are long gone. We will pass on love of Everton, loyalty & commitment to NSNO to our descendants.

Right now that is the only hope I cling to.

We are Everton.

@rodgerarmstrong