IT HAS TAKEN Everton 51 years to beat Leeds United in a league match at Elland Road; guess who sent another statistic tumbling yesterday? Clue: think young, new golden boots, future of English football. Strange to think that Wayne Rooney’s proud father (also called Wayne) had not even been born the last time that Everton won in Leeds. Typical kids — no respect.

No respect. That phrase says everything about the Barclaycard Premiership’s latest prodigy. No respite applies to the predicament Leeds find themselves in. It was not so long ago that David O’Leary’s side were being fêted for their brash, youthful exuberance. Terry Venables is now in charge of a side that appears tired and is creaking badly.

The opposite is true for Everton, a team that has been energised by their dynamic 17-year-old centre forward, that has won three league matches in succession and that now sits in sixth position in the table, seven places above their latest victims.

David Moyes, the manager, delayed Rooney’s arrival until the 75th minute yesterday, but the temptation to give him his head must be a grievous one.

Rooney has made ten senior appearances for his club, seven as a substitute, a role in which he has scored each of his four goals. His latest was exquisite. He collected a pass from Tony Hibbert, spun past Eirik Bakke, who was left sprawling on the turf, darted inside the penalty area, pulled the ball wide of Lucas Radebe and shot through the defender’s legs and wide of Paul Robinson.

“Wayne will get the headlines for that,” Moyes said, “but he’ll continue to grab them throughout his career.” Does the expectation swirling around Rooney make his job harder? “No, it makes it easier. I can keep him out of the spotlight, no bother. I’ll do what’s best for him, make the right decisions. There’s a lot of talk about young players being overused, but he’s ready.”

Venables, who knows a thing or two about such matters, concurred readily. “He’s terrific,” he said. “No doubt about it; he’s not just a good prospect, he’s a good player now.” There could be no denying it, although there was little doubt, too, that the Rooney roadshow overshadowed the fact that Everton were the better side in every department.

August 24: Leeds preside over the rest. September 14: they beat Manchester United to go third. This morning, they are in their lowest league position for 21 months, a time when O’Leary’s first-team squad was hard hit by injuries and treading water. Now they seem to be drowning in apathy, poor form and animosity.

It took 30 minutes for the crowd to begin their ritualistic chanting for David Batty, the veteran midfield player who Venables has unceremoniously cast aside, while half-time brought the opening volley of jeers. If there are players at present fulfilling their potential at Elland Road, then only Alan Smith and Robinson could make the claim with much justification.

Rather too much was seen of Robinson for Venables’ liking. Within moments of the start, the England goalkeeper was called upon to tip a swooping free-kick from Mark Pembridge over the crossbar.

On four occasions he blocked or pushed aside fierce, close-range shots by Tomasz Radzinski — who could have had a hat-trick — and he was to perform similar heroics to contain Lee Carsley.

Leeds were hardly impotent in front of goal — Hibbert, the Everton right back, cleared a low shot from Jonathan Woodgate off the line — but the ease and frequency with which their defence and midfield were split asunder, even before Rooney’s arrival, made a mockery of title-winning, European or even mid-table ambitions. Venables went through the motions of praising his players, but they were average.

There were signs of improvement in the second half, when Nick Barmby, Bakke, Smith, Harry Kewell and Lee Bowyer all spurned decent chances, but they wasted possession with a desperate monotony and rarely seemed capable of reclaiming it. Venables bemoaned the refusal of Neale Barry to award a penalty when Smith was challenged by Joseph Yobo, but the argument did not feel convincing.

By contrast, Everton are full of themselves and given that this performance was achieved without the injured Thomas Gravesen — one of their most inspirational players — the immediate future looks more than promising. “Every one of my players was outstanding,” Moyes said. “They’re brimming with confidence and they’ve been wonderful.”

One, of course, stands taller than the rest, in promise, if not stature. He has yet to sign a professional contract, he does not have the money, the attitude, or the car, but Rooney has certainly got something special. “I speak to him regularly about his development,” Moyes said. “You have to remember that he only started a new job five months ago.” Will he need to calm him down? “I wouldn’t dare,” he said.

Leeds United (4-3-3): P Robinson 8 — D Mills 5, J Woodgate 6, L Radebe 7, T Lucic 5 (sub: I Harte, 46min 5) — L Bowyer 5, E Bakke 5, N Barmby 5 — A Smith 6, M Viduka 5 (sub: M Bridges, 68 6), H Kewell 5. Substitutes not used: N Martyn, G Kelly, M Bridges, J McMaster. Booked: Barmby, Lucic, Bowyer. NEXT: West Ham United (h). FORM: LDLDLL

Everton (4-4-2): R Wright 6 — T Hibbert 7, J Yobo 6, A Stubbs 7, D Unsworth 7 — L Carsley 7, Li Tie 7 (sub: G Naysmith, 82), T Linderoth 6, M Pembridge 6 — T Radzinski 8 (sub: W Rooney, 75), K Campbell 7. Substitutes not used: P Gerrard, S Watson, D Weir. Booked: Unsworth, Campbell, Wright. NEXT: Charlton Athletic (h). FORM: WWWLWL

Shots on target: (h) 4 (a) 7. Fouls: (h) 15 (a) 20. Offsides: (h) 4 (a) 4