Everton Under-23s conceded twice inside three second-half minutes to go down to a 3-1 Premier League 2 defeat by Derby County.
Luke Thomas opened the scoring for the Rams on nine minutes, but following substitute Shayne Lavery's expertly-taken equalising goal, David Unsworth’s side appeared poised to go on and secure the victory which would have lifted them a place to fourth in the table.
With 12 minutes left on the clock, however, visiting midfielder Max Bird drilled home from 20 yards. And with Everton committing men forward in pursuit of a second leveller, Derby broke to kill off the contest through Lewis Walker’s close-range finish.