Kuqi’s mood lifted by... Everton win

GRIFFIN Park may have been glazed with a layer of ice, but despite the postponement of the trip to Brentford, Athletic's players didn't simply put their feet up at the weekend.

Instead, Paul Dickov's men went to face Everton in a training match played out at the Premier League club's Halewood headquarters — and won 1-0, thanks to a goal from Shefki Kuqi.

"We could have won by more, but it was great for him to get a goal," said Kuqi's strike partner Robbie Simpson.

"He is smiling now, so hopefully that is a weight off his shoulders and he can get back to the scoring form he showed when he first came here."

In the Everton side on the day were Portugal under-21 international forward Joao Silva, England under-21 midfielder Ross Barkley and Jose Baxter, who spent the first half of this season on loan at Tranmere, scoring against Athletic in the Wirral side's 1-0 home win.