Everton went to the MKM Stadium unbeaten in five, with a fan base already half-distracted by the Friedkin Group putting the club up for sale. They came home unbeaten in six. Nobody on the Everton side of YouTube is treating that as good news.
Hull City 2-2 Everton went like this. It was 0-0 at half-time. Joe Gelhardt chipped Jordan Pickford just after the break, after Sorba Thomas picked off a loose Ainsley Maitland-Niles pass. Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall headed in Maitland-Niles' cross to make amends. Dewsbury-Hall then slipped Thierno Barry in for 2-1 on 68 minutes. Then Mohamed Belloumi came off the bench and levelled from Elliot Stroud's cut-back with 16 minutes left. Brennan Johnson also had one ruled out for offside. David Moyes told Match of the Day he was "really frustrated with the levels generally".
That is the mood in every Everton room tonight. The Hull view came before kick-off and sounded a lot more relaxed.
Two points dropped, full stop
ToffeeTV did the full shift: player ratings, an instant reaction, then Baz's longer match reaction as the evening went on. Three uploads for one away draw says plenty about how much there was to pick at. Dewsbury-Hall was the standout, with a goal and an assist. Maitland-Niles is the awkward one: he set up Everton's equaliser, but he also gave the ball away for Hull's opener. When your best player and your weakest link are on the same scoresheet, a draw is about right. Try telling that to anyone who watched it.
"Not good enough"
The Toffee Blues went straight for it in the title: NOT GOOD ENOUGH! 2 POINTS DROPPED! That line is the whole Everton argument in six words. They were 2-1 up away at a newly promoted side with 22 minutes left, and they let it go. Moyes said much the same himself. He couldn't see "any way" Everton would fail to win from 2-1, then pointed at a couple of defensive mistakes and a pile of missed chances. When the manager and the fan channel are reading off the same sheet, there isn't much of a debate left.
From a question mark to a verdict
Falcon Blues TV are the best way to see the mood harden. Their instant reaction at the whistle asked "2 POINTS DROPPED?" with a question mark. Within half an hour, the full reaction had dropped it: "2 POINTS DROPPED BARRY COULD HAVE HAD A HAT TRICK". That's the other half of the grievance. Barry took his goal well. The room's view is that it should have been more than one, and a striker who leaves goals out there in a 2-2 tends to get the blame for the other two.
So much for the form
TOFFEE BLUECAST had a short out before kick-off titled "Everton form sexy and I know it". After full time they were back with a plain HULL CITY 2-2 EVERTON match reaction, no jokes in the title. Fair play to them for the jinx, really. Six league games unbeaten is a proper run, and it leaves Everton on 10 points. But the sexy form didn't survive a second half in which both teams went behind and both took the lead.
Live, and not happy
FollowEverton went live after the game with Corey and Ryan. The lower-third on Ryan's half of the screen reads "Sack the board", which tells you a sale story and a dropped lead can share a stage. Live rooms like this are where the takes are rawest, with the chat firing in while the hosts are still cross. There was plenty to be cross about: the mistakes at the back, the Johnson goal Moyes wasn't sure about, the chances Barry left behind.
Meanwhile, the home end
The To Hull and Back Podcast did their bit before kick-off with an episode called "Chewing Toffees". They'll take a point. Hull boss Sergej Jakirovic said "a point is good" and praised a team that "never surrendered". Gelhardt, back in the Premier League for the first time since his Leeds days, called it "a good point" too. Belloumi, only fit enough for the bench after scoring for Algeria in midweek, came on and made the difference. For a promoted side keeping up a good start, that's an afternoon to frame.
The argument
Is unbeaten in six worth celebrating, or is this the sort of draw that costs you a European place in May? The Everton rooms have picked their side, and it isn't the optimistic one. They think a team good enough to go 2-1 up at the MKM should be good enough to close it out. They also think the sloppy passing and missed chances that let Hull back in aren't one-offs. Hull, for their part, are just glad the Toffees showed up chewable.