On the face of things, there might not have been much to take from Everton's under-23s making their return to action on Monday evening. They were beaten 2-0 by Blackburn Rovers at Southport with goals in either half confirming what was a comfortable victory for the visitors.
Realistically, David Unsworth's side deserved to get beat. Playing in a 5-3-2 formation which has served them well on multiple occasions this term, they weren't able to play through the lines as effectively as they might have liked despite a few notable performances - from Sean McAllister, Rhys Hughes and Stanley Mills in particular.
But it was the return of Charlie Whitaker from injury that might have captured the select fans in attendance, with a stream of the match not being available to due a senior Premier League match overlapping the fixture. The midfielder got 70 minutes, making his first appearance since the beginning of January.
