It was minus 7°C, some said. Minus 9, others insisted. The coldest game ever played in the Premier League: that was something that brooked no dissent.
And yet, minutes after the final whistle on Monday night, when the logical response would have been to retreat to the warmth of the dressing rooms, a short-shirted Tim Cahill was still on the pitch saluting the frozen fans.
Tim Howard, Phil Neville and Leighton Baines were there, too, brothers in arms encapsulating all that is good about Everton.
In a season when a team tipped for so much more have had little to celebrate, Everton's extraordinary win over Manchester City was a reminder of their attributes: the remarkable team spirit and unity they possess to accompany the considerable quality in their ranks, all augmented by the tactical prowess of David Moyes.
It felt, as the manager said, like more than a normal victory.
And now comes the hard part: the easy game. That is a paradox, but so is Everton's season.
They have only had four league wins this season and, with respect to Stoke, the other three were outstanding results.
The wonderful rearguard action at Eastlands came close to matching the emphatic Merseyside derby victory in October.
In the same month, meanwhile, they became the only visitors to take three points at Birmingham in the last 15 months.
Everton should be firm favourites for today's rematch with Birmingham. That, in itself, poses problems.
Home games against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Newcastle United, Bolton Wanderers and West Bromwich Albion have brought a mere two points.
As Moyes has admitted, chances have gone unconverted at Goodison Park. It is there that Everton's crippling lack of a fit and fully firing forward has been at its most telling.
The striking quartet of Louis Saha, Victor Anichebe, Jermaine Beckford and Yakubu is full of potential but they have misfired badly and have a total of three league goals among them.
Cahill, with nine, has bailed out Everton time and again, but the Australian still requires a partner. It will not be Anichebe, who is banned today. There are problems at both front and back.
Phil Jagielka's thigh injury, coupled with Johnny Heitinga's knee problem, leaves Moyes short of central defenders.
Yet it is a feature of Everton that they can be at their most capable in adversity. This is the team that reached the FA Cup final when they seemed to be down to 11 fit players, none of them specialist strikers.
Now there is a further test of adaptability. The right-back Tony Hibbert may be called upon to join Sylvain Distin in the middle of defence.
A more intriguing choice would be Jack Rodwell, long compared to Rio Ferdinand but used in midfield to date. With Mikel Arteta, after suspension, and Steven Pienaar, following injury, acting as reinforcements there, the progressive move may be to push Rodwell back.
Defeat could leave Birmingham's draw specialists in the bottom three. It would also push Everton towards the top 10. It is where they should be, but after overcoming the conditions and the opponents alike on Monday, they need to show they can prosper the obvious way.
7pm, Abu Dhabi Sports 3