Stevie: Luis put them on a plate
Steven Gerrard admitted it was a special feeling to score a hat-trick against Everton in Liverpool's 3-0 win – and then praised Luis Suarez for the role he played in creating two of his three Merseyside derby goals.
The Reds skipper opened the scoring in the first half with a perfectly executed left-foot lob after Tim Howard had saved from Martin Kelly.
Gerrard then netted in the 51st and 94th minutes to complete his hat-trick, benefitting from brilliant work from Suarez on both occasions.
"To beat Everton is always special, so to get three goals is that little bit extra," said the captain.
"But I have to give my teammates a special mention, especially Luis Suarez - he put two on a plate for me.
"It was a great team performance and a clean sheet - everything we wanted from the game, we got."
Gerrard and Suarez were selected alongside Andy Carroll in an attack-minded starting XI by Kenny Dalglish.
The No.8 added: "I haven't played with him (Luis) much, but when I have we seem to have an understanding. With Andy (Carroll) as well, I think the three of us in the starting XI are always going to be a threat.
"Hopefully that can continue to get stronger and stronger."
Gerrard's hat-trick was the first scored in a Merseyside derby in the league since Ian Rush's Goodison Park treble in 1982.
The 31-year-old admits that statistic makes his three-goal salvo even more satisfying.
"I suppose it does make it even more special, especially if it was Ian Rush," said Gerrard. "He's a hero of mine, I looked up to him for a long time and watched many, many videos of him.
"But let's not be stupid - I'm not comparing myself to Ian Rush! He was a different breed."
The victory ended Liverpool's sequence of three consecutive Barclays Premier League defeats - and Gerrard is hoping it can prove the catalyst for a more consistent run of form.
He said: "It's been frustrating. The inconsistency we've been showing in the league has been very frustrating. We played very well against Arsenal and never got anything, and then we never turned up against Sunderland.
"We're going from one extreme to another at the moment and we need to find a level of consistency where we go on a winning streak rather than winning one (game) and then losing one because otherwise we find ourselves in a position in the league we don't want."