- and for the 6th successive season we start off with a home match
- click here to see our previous exploits on the opening day
- it'll actually be the 3rd time in seven seasons that we've started against the Gunners
- and we lost both of the previous two games
- remember this one, coincidentally also played on the 15th August?

- we follow the Arsenal match with our first game in the new Europa League
- and the draw for our 4th Qualifying Round tie will take place on 7th August

- as for the end of last season ... well ... Mickey Mouse Cup anyway ....

- a devastatingly disappointing day at Wembley to end what was a magnificent season
- that's 8 defeats now in 13 FA Cup Finals (and I was sitting in Row 13 Seat 13 - so we were never going to win)

- and of course it continued our dismal recent record against Chelsea
- we've won none of our last 23 meetings - our record in this period being 0-8-15

- Louis Saha's goal was timed at 25 seconds but it isn't the quickest we've ever scored
- that honour belongs to Howard Kendall who scored in 14 seconds for us back in March 1970
- the opponents that day? Chelsea! And a better result for us then - click here for the details

- anyway, 2008/09 was a great season overall despite the Cup defeat
- a Cup Final and 5th in the Premier League for the 2nd successive season
- a marvellous achievement by Moyesy and the boys
- our final position for the last 5 years has been: 4-11-6-5-5

- Tim Howard ended the season on 17 'shut-outs' in the Premier League
- that's the best a keeper has ever achieved for us in the Prem
- beating Nevile Southall's previous single-season record of 15 from back in 1995-96
- click here to see details of our top seasons for clean sheets
- and just think, Tim had no clean sheets at all in our first 9 league matches of the season!

- strangely, we finished the season collecting more points away from home than we did at Goodison
- this is the first time we've done this since our championship winning season of 1914-15
- although if 3 points for a win had been in operation in 1957-58 we'd have done it then as well

- our new kit has now of course been officially revealed
- you can see images of our previous (better!) kits throughout the ages by clicking here
- this updated section on our kits comes courtesy of the wonderful Historical Football Kits website
- and I have now included images of our previous away kits as well as the home kits!

- also updated is the All-Time League Tables section
- this shows how we fare compared to everyone else who's played in the top flight and/or the Premier League

- and that's that for the time being!
- thanks for all of your complimentary comments and complicated queries
- lots of tweaks and tidying up to be done during the close season
- and I'll be back refreshed and ready for action in August

- ... don't forget what was the most recent major addition to EvertonResults.com ...
- ... line-ups for all of the competitive matches Everton have ever played
- click here for more information, details of how to view the line-ups, etc, etc
- and a special big 'thank you' to Steve Flanagan (of Toffeeweb and wider fame) for continuing to provide loads of the missing data