Everton held Manchester United to a 1-1 draw Saturday in another setback for the defending champion as it tries to catch the Premier League leaders. Hull's dazzling start to its topflight debut continued with a 3-0 victory over West Bromwich Albion. The fourth straight league win put Hull level on 20 points at the top of the standings with Chelsea and Liverpool, which play each other Sunday. United, which has 15 points, was cruising after Darren Fletcher scored in the 22nd minute, but Marouane Fellaini leveled in the 63rd. “We had good chances and played some fantastic football and we should have capitalized on that,” United manager Alex Ferguson said. “At the end of the day, though, you cannot deny Everton the point.” Sunderland beat Newcastle 2-1 in the northeast derby, which saw Joey Barton return for the Magpies after serving a six-match ban for attacking a teammate during his Manchester City career. Newcastle fans threw objects at Barton, forcing police to intervene, before the midfielder was brought on in the 85th. Also, Benni McCarthy scored four minutes into second-half injury time to salvage Blackburn a 1-1 draw against Middlesbrough. Man. United looked headed for its seventh consecutive victory in all competitions after Fletcher controlled a pass from Ryan Giggs, rounded Joleon Lescott and shot through goalkeeper Tim Howard's legs. Nemanja Vidic could have extended the lead but his shot was cleared off the line by Leon Osman and Howard then denied both Cristiano Ronaldo and Ryan Giggs. Everton was lucky to have conceded just one goal in the first half and the Toffees found their way back into the match when Fellaini rose above Vidic to head a cross from former United defender Phil Neville past goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar. Wayne Rooney, who scored his first career goal for Everton in 2002, missed chances to score his 100th against his former club. Rooney was substituted in the 72nd after being booked for a late tackle on Mikel Arteta, unjustly according to Ferguson. Bayern rallies to win In Germany, Bayern Munich overcame a two-goal deficit and climbed up the Bundesliga standings Saturday with a 4-2 victory over visiting Wolfsburg. Bayern, which moved to 15 points from nine games, got goals from Franck Ribery, Mark van Bommel, Tim Borowski and Bastian Schweinsteiger while playing without Luca Toni and Philipp Lahm. Grafite, who returned to Germany on Friday after mourning the loss of his father in his native Brazil, converted a penalty for Wolfsburg in the 31st minute after Edin Dzeko was knocked down. Dzeko doubled the lead two minutes later, but Ribery pulled a goal back in the 41st. Van Bommel then equalized with a header from 14 meters (yards) in the 54th, and Borowski gave Bayern the lead in the 63rd. Marcel Schaefer then hit the post in the 72nd, but Schweinsteiger made it 4-2 off Miroslav Klose's headed pass in the 80th. Wolfsburg's fast start wasn't enough for coach Felix Magath's return to his former club, keeping the team with 13 points. Eintracht Frankfurt also overcame a two-goal deficit, beating host Energie Cottbus 3-2. In Moenchengladbach, Borussia Moenchengladbach beat Karlsruhe 1-0; Schalke is fifth place after playing to a 0-0 draw against Arminia Bielefeld, while Werder Bremen drew 1-1 at Hannover. – AP __
