Norwich City made it three home games without a defeat by coming from behind to earn a 1-1 draw with Everton at Carrow Road this afternoon.
The visitors dominated the opening 45 minutes, but could only muster one goal as Romelu Lukaku netted for the seventh match in a row.
It took Norwich just 64 seconds to find the equaliser at the start of the second half, with Wes Hoolahan squeezing the ball over the line from close range.
Here, Sports Mole looks at whether either side deserved more from the contest.
Match statistics
NORWICH
Shots: 9
On target: 2
Possession: 41%
Corners: 5
Fouls: 9
EVERTON
Shots: 15
On target: 3
Possession: 59%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 6
Was the result fair?
Where to begin with this question? Ultimately, Norwich will feel that they deserve a point from this one for the way they fought back in the second half and put in a much better performance than the opening 45 minutes. However, for Everton this is certainly another two points dropped. They should have been home and dry by half time having utterly dominated the first half, but only managing to turn their possession and chances into a solitary goal.
Lukaku and Arouna Kone both had clear chances to give their side a bit of breathing space in the first half, while Leighton Baines was unfortunate to see his strike hit the post too. It could have easily been four or five to Everton at the interval, but it was a different Norwich side who emerged for the second half. It was a much more even contest, and if anything the hosts edged it after the break. They came nowhere close to Everton's level of dominance from the first half, but it did look at times as though the roles had been reversed.
Indeed, Norwich may feel slightly unlucky to only have the one point from this match. Cameron Jerome missed an absolute sitter in the second half that would have proved to be the winner, while there were also openings for Hoolahan and Robbie Brady. A Norwich win would have certainly been harsh on Everton, though, as they created a couple of chances of their own in the second half too. All in all, Everton really should have won this game, but Norwich's fightback means that a draw is not quite as unfair as it once looked like being.
Norwich's performance
Only those in attendance know what Alex Neil said to his side at half time, but an educated guess is that it was loud, short and not very sweet. His side were truly dreadful in the opening 45 minutes, and you couldn't blame the fans for booing the team on a number of occasions, including when the whistle was blown for half time. They gave the ball away far too often and were punished time and time again by a rampant Everton side on the break.
The only positive to take from the first half was that they were still somehow just about in the game. A mixture of some good goalkeeping, the woodwork and some wasteful finishing from Everton meant that the deficit was only one at the break, and that was wiped out within two minutes of the second half. Making such a quick start was vital as it got the fans immediately back on side, and suddenly Carrow Road became a cauldron of noise willing the team on, rather than an air of disgruntlement lingering around the ground.
The effect of that could be seen on the pitch too, with Norwich suddenly looking a lot hungrier and energetic than in the first half. They cut the unforced errors out of their game and looked just as dangerous on the break as Everton had in the first half. It was the hosts who looked most like winning the game in the second half - a situation that was almost unimaginable in the first - and having hung on for the opening 45 minutes they probably should have won it when Jerome blazed a sitter over the bar. In the end, though, they have to be happy with the point and their second-half performance.
Everton's performance
During the first half, many may have been questioning why Everton were not closer to the top four, challenging for the Champions League places, but this match is the perfect indication of their problems so far this season. The Toffees played some irresistible football at times in the opening 45 minutes, with Gerard Deulofeu and Lukaku in particular enjoying themselves. They were given a helping hand on numerous occasions by repeated Norwich mistakes, but they still had to make the most of them and - in terms of chances created at least - they certainly did that.
The frustration for Everton was that they could not add to their lead. Lukaku missed a glorious chance at the back post to double his personal tally, while Kone failed to get the better of Declan Rudd in two separate one-on-one situations. Baines also hit the post with a great effort on his weaker foot, but that second remained elusive. You wondered whether those missed chances would come back to haunt them, and that is exactly what happened when Norwich hit back in the second half.
Everton's second-half performance was a far cry from the free-flowing football of the first, although that was as much down to Norwich's improvement as anything else. Gareth Barry missed the visitors' best chance of the second half, but in the end they were a little fortunate to come away with anything after Jerome's miss. Even a point will be disappointing though, as that is now three draws on the bounce, and all in games that they really should have won. Roberto Martinez will know that his side can't afford to keep dropping points like that if they are to push for Europe.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Declan Rudd: This certainly wouldn't have been the choice at half time, but Everton's attackers who were so impressive in the first half faded badly in the second. Rudd, preferred again to John Ruddy, made two big saves from Kone in the first half and another to thwart Barry in the second, and that was enough to earn his side a point.
Biggest gaffe
Lukaku squandered a glorious opportunity in the first half when a man in his sort of form should have finished it with his eyes closed, but his blushes were spared to some extent by an even worse miss from Jerome later in the match. The Norwich striker had the goal gaping for him after being found by Hoolahan's back-heel, but he blazed his shot over the top with just 20 minutes remaining.
Referee performance
This was a pretty straightforward match for Martin Atkinson, whose solitary yellow card of the match was not produced until the 92nd minute.
What next?
Norwich: Things don't get any easier for Norwich, with a trip to Old Trafford next Saturday in their last game before Christmas.
Everton: Everton, meanwhile, host high-flying Leicester City at Goodison Park next Saturday.
Barney Corkhill
