The empty seats told you everything you needed to know.
The lifeblood of Everton Football Club, the defining factor in the club's Premier League survival, have once again been superb over a six week period that has seen them clock up thousands of miles in pursuit of their true love. There have been difficult days among those weeks - the failures to register a shot on target across 180 minutes at Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United among them.
But throughout, the travelling Blues have backed their side. Spirit of the Blues lived on even as progress stuttered. Yet after 80 minutes of a south coast horror show Everton 's supporters began to leave the Vitality Stadium to the humiliation of their rival fans singing: "We want five." They deserved better. Far better.
The Premier League matters more than the Carabao Cup. Both can be important though and no club that has gone almost three decades without the taste of silverware can be complacent about opportunities to chase trophies. Frank Lampard said before the trip to Bournemouth that he was taking this competition seriously. Whether that was the case was open to debate when the starting line-up revealed 11 changes. Make no mistake, however. This might not have been Everton's strongest XI. But it was a side that should have been able to compete against a Bournemouth side that also made nine changes. Whether it be to earn a new contract, a greater role in the league, or to prove resilience after injury, every one of those given the privilege of starting in Royal Blue had a point to prove. This may not have been the starting eleven best-placed to send Everton through to the fourth round, but it was perhaps the eleven players within the squad for whom this game was the most important. Few covered themselves in glory.
