Liverpool were denied the summit of the Premiership by a dramatic last-minute effort by Tim Cahill, a late equaliser which came as a massive blow to Liverpool's title bid. Two more points spilled at home to in-form Everton means Liverpool are level with Manchester United on points, but their rivals have a superior goal difference and a game in hand.

The derby was physical and in fifth gear from start to finish. Its one of those games that referees dread, but fair dues to Howard Webb, managing a great job to diffuse a combustible situation as much as humanly possible and have a somewhat normal game in light of the passion and no-quarters-given on the turf. Both teams could claim a penalty, but none was given. And unusually for a Merseyside derby, at full time there had been only two yellow cards handed out and no red cards.

None of this will console the Liverpool supporters, however, who have been gutted in the most ruthless manner - that feeling when you spill in the dying seconds of the game when sweet victory over your local bitter rivals is only a fingertip away. Liverpool are right to blame themselves, they were by far the better team in the second half, had superior spells of possessions and the clearer chances.  But that is not to say that Everton were thoroughly outplayed - to their credit, Evertoon stood better in the first half, and to a large extend the score was fair.

In the first half, the expected Liverpool onslaught did not unfold as expected by their supporters. The battle was in the middle of the park, with Everton pressing and harassing Pepe Reina with an endless string of crosses into the Liverpool box. The Liverpool back four and Reina in particular were busy fending off corner kicks and crosses, and the score remained 0-0 at half time.

The hosts were lucky not to concede as Sami Hyypia and Martin Skrtel withstood the pressure at the back. The first half synopsis would be a Fernando Torres miss of what was Liverpool's best chance, clipping a post when alone against the keeper. However, Reina also had to save well from Victor Anichebe's early strike and Cahill's header, the two cleanest chances at either end.

By far, the best performance for Everton on the night, as when the match resumed, Liverpool gradually took over possession and domination in the centre of the park, looking for that opening goal. It came in the form of their inspirational captain Steven Gerrard, who unleashed a 25-yard screamer into the lower right corner, temporarily propelling Liverpool to the top of the league on 69 minutes.

But Everton were resilient and they were not going to be broken that easily. And just when the Spion Kop could smell the sweet scent of victory over their rivals, made even sweeter by the fact that it meant leapfrogging United, Cahill glanced home Mikel Arteta's free-kick with only two minutes remaining on the scoreboard, giving David Moyes a smile, as in form Everton snatched a point from the jaws of defeat.