Sports

Merseyside derby draw ‘suitably surreal’


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Merseyside derbies are usually played out to the backdrop of sound and fury – the first meeting between Everton and Liverpool behind closed doors was accompanied by the soundtrack of a saxophone.

The 202nd league meeting of these great rivals was the first played in such reduced circumstances and was a suitably surreal occasion lacking the passion and noise that is an integral part of these fixtures.

In derby history, there have been two 19:00 BST kick-offs, the first an FA Cup fifth-round tie in March 1967 which drew a combined crowd of 106,000, with almost 60,000 watching in the flesh at Goodison Park and the rest on a big screen at Anfield.

Here, in the second, Everton and Liverpool played out this goalless
draw to only the shouts of those directly involved, with less than 300 people dotted around this famous old arena.

And, lending an even more bizarre slant to a derby like no other was the sound of a very talented saxophone player lurking somewhere in the vicinity of Goodison Park.

The musician’s repertoire was occasionally repetitive but it certainly
added to the mood with a stirring version of Joy Division’s “Love Will Tear Us Apart” and Gerry Rafferty’s “Baker Street”.

Vincent Paul

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