A DATE that Cannot be miss this season MAY 5th..WEMBLEY FINAL

Liverpool 2 Everton 1: Carroll repays Kenny's faith as much-maligned striker heads Reds back to Wembley

A Wembley showpiece dominated by mistakes was ultimately settled by the player accused of being the most expensive of them all.

Andy Carroll might not be blessed with the magical feet you would expect from a £35million striker.

But put the ball in the air and there is usually nobody better.

Sing up for Carroll: Liverpool secured their place in the FA Cup final thanks to their much-maligned striker

Having missed one sitter with his head, Carroll was not going to make the same mistake again when his big moment arrived three minutes from the end of an absorbing but error-strewn semi-final in which Merseyside came 200 miles south to London.

Craig Bellamy swung in a freekick from the Liverpool left after a foul on Steven Gerrard and Carroll rose powerfully between markers Nikica Jelavic and Marouane Fellaini to connect with the back of his head.

The ball flashed past a despairing Tim Howard.
'Andy is the best header of the ball I've seen for 20 years,' purred Kevin Keegan, his former manager at Newcastle, afterwards.

Anyone who can out-jump the 6ft 5in Fellaini - and you can add another six inches for his hair - deserves that accolade.

For Kenny Dalglish, victory probably tasted extra sweet after the negative headlines this season over his signings, the team's results that see them mid-table in the Premier League and their handling of Luis Suarez, who grabbed the team's equaliser.

Head boy: Carroll flicked home the winner from a free-kick in the 87th minute

The Liverpool manager, with a rare smile for the cameras, said: 'I thought the players were magnificent to come back from a goal down. Big Andy has been battered this season, we have all been battered. Maybe that is what we need to get us going, so continue to batter us.'

Everton were distraught afterwards.

They are now in the 11th year of the David Moyes era and still waiting for their first trophy. 'It is disastrous.

We really thought it would be our year,' admitted their skipper Phil Neville. He knows defeat was particularly painful because it was self-inflicted.
They had been gifted the lead in the first half when dreadful indecision between Jamie Carragher and Daniel Agger allowed Jelavic to open the scoring.
The Liverpool manager, with a rare smile for the cameras, said: 'I thought the players were magnificent to come back from a goal down. Big Andy has been battered this season, we have all been battered. Maybe that is what we need to get us going, so continue to batter us.'

Everton were distraught afterwards.

They are now in the 11th year of the David Moyes era and still waiting for their first trophy. 'It is disastrous.

We really thought it would be our year,' admitted their skipper Phil Neville. He knows defeat was particularly painful because it was self-inflicted.
They had been gifted the lead in the first half when dreadful indecision between Jamie Carragher and Daniel Agger allowed Jelavic to open the scoring.

Bright start: Nikica Jelavic was on hand to slide Everton into the lead after a defensive mix-up

At that stage, Liverpool looked low on confidence and there for the taking.

 

Somewhere in France ousted director of football Damien Comolli may have allowed himself a wry smile.

Carroll missed a gilt-edged chance to level and pulled his shirt over his face in embarrassment after heading wide from four yards.

In the stands, Ian Rush, Liverpool's greatest ever striker and 1986 and 1989 FA Cup final hero against Everton, also held his head in his hands.

Yet Everton could not finish the job off and the turning point came when their own howler threw Liverpool a lifeline.

Pure delight: The goal caps a brilliant start to the striker's life at the club

Sylvain Distin was under no pressure as he tried to pass back to Howard. But a momentary loss of concentration saw his effort woefully underhit.

Suarez is the last person he wanted to see lurking and the controversial South American duly scored.
Moyes admitted afterwards: 'If you make mistakes, you don't win trophies.'

And from that moment, you sensed both red and blue knew that Liverpool would go on to win.

The scenes at the end will live long in the memory on an afternoon tinged with poignancy, a minute's silence for the 96 Liverpool fans who died at an FA Cup semi-final at Hillsborough 23 years ago and Brad Jones in the Liverpool goal five months after losing his young son Luca to leukaemia.

Few chances: Leighton Baines had one of the few early opportunities from a setplay

Jones, Liverpool's third-choice keeper and supposedly weak link, was competent throughout and sunk to the turf overcome by emotion.

When he got up he was hugged by Pepe Reina, the man he had replaced due to the Spaniard's suspension.
It had seemed so different at 12.30 when it was the Evertonians who felt the more optimistic, and Dalglish the manager under pressure.

That did not change when Liverpool fell behind in comical fashion after 24 minutes.

Taking precautions: Tim Howard was rarely troubled in a first half that was dominated by Everton

Agger and Carragher had an age to clear a Jelavic flick but motioned to each other to take responsibility.

As Tim Cahill closed in, Carragher finally tried to hack the ball away – straight into the Australian's midriff. The rebound fell in front of Jelavic and the sure-fire Croat buried the chance for sixth goal in eight starts since his January move to Goodison.

Shell-shocked Liverpool spent the rest of the half recovering but should have been level after 47 minutes.

Stewart Downing sped down the right and crossed for Carroll, who had peeled away from Neville at the far post.

Big miss: Carroll was left in disbelief after missing a very, very simple chance at the back post

The Liverpool fans were already up in celebration but somehow the striker headed the ball into the ground and wide with virtually half the goal to aim at.
It took Distin's howler to haul them level. Suarez, banned for eight games earlier in the season for racially abusing Patrice Evra, held off Jonny Heitinga comfortably and produced a brilliant finish with the outside of his right-foot from eight yards Both sides made changes.

Maxi and Bellamy came on for Liverpool. Moyes sent on Coleman.

Time it right: Luis Suarez pulled his side back level shortly after the hour mark

Significantly, though, Dalglish kept Carroll on despite having also played him for 90 minutes in midweek at Blackburn, and he proved the match-winner 'It's the best feeling ever,' said Carroll, who had gone two months without a goal until Tuesday night.

'I've had some criticism but I've just kept on going. I get the winner here and it's a great feeling. I believe in myself every day.'

Carragher said afterwards that Carroll's winner alone is worth £35million to Liverpool.

Dalglish will hope that, across the Atlantic, owner John W Henry agrees.

High times: The striker was later awarded with the man of the match gong