Braiden Graham Stars Despite Everton U21s Loss to Stockport
Everton Under-21s lived through the full range of emotions at Edgeley Park – from shell-shocked, to inspired, to undone – as they lost a breathless 6-3 EFL Trophy tie to Stockport County.
They were three down, then level, then blown away again. One player, though, walked off with his reputation enhanced: Braiden Graham, a 9/10 on a night his team conceded six.
Stockport’s second string still too strong
Jimmy McNulty ripped up his weekend team-sheet. Eleven changes from the Stockport side that opened their League One campaign with a 3-1 win at Plymouth Argyle, but no drop in authority.
Everton, under head of academy player development David Hughes, spent most of the first half pinned back. County dictated the tempo, pressed high and punished every mistake.
The opener arrived on 11 minutes and it was laced with a little history. Malik Mothersille – once on trial with Everton’s U21s after leaving Chelsea, but ultimately signing for Peterborough United – came back to haunt them. Callum Camps slid him through while blue shirts waited for an offside flag that never came. George Pickford got a hand to the shot, not enough to stop it creeping over the line.
Stockport smelt vulnerability and never really let up.
Just before the break, Everton tried to play out from the back and paid a heavy price. Captain William Tamen was robbed in a dangerous area, Camps was left with a simple finish, and the scoreline finally reflected the pattern of the game.
The punishment wasn’t over. With the last touch of the half, Jason Adigun nutmegged Tamen, squared for Mika Mandron and the forward made it 3-0. Hughes’ side trudged off looking buried.
Graham drags Everton back from the brink
They weren’t. Not immediately, anyway.
Everton came out after half-time with a different edge and the game suddenly flipped. On 51 minutes, Graham, operating wide on the right, delivered a precise cross into the box. Joel Catesby met it with an assured finish, a sweet moment for the Birkenhead-born forward who broke his leg in this competition at Bradford last October. A goal and a little redemption in one swing.
The visitors sensed a way back. Three minutes later, Melvin Matos burst into the box and was chopped down by Owen Moxon. Graham took responsibility from the spot, sent Lucas Ashby-Hammond the wrong way and rolled the ball into the keeper’s right-hand corner. 3-2. Edgeley Park, so comfortable for the hosts, suddenly felt edgy.
Everton grew. Graham, now brimming with confidence, kept demanding the ball. Matos, head bandaged after an early clash that left his original shirt bloodied, fought for every challenge. For a spell, Hughes’ youngsters looked the sharper, braver side.
On 77 minutes, their belief was rewarded. Graham picked up possession on the edge of the area and curled a superb effort beyond Ashby-Hammond. From 3-0 down to 3-3. A remarkable comeback, complete – briefly.
Comeback crushed in 120 seconds
The parity didn’t last long enough for Everton to even settle into it.
Within a minute of the restart, substitute Tayo Edun arrived at the back post and drilled Stockport back in front. Everton’s defensive line, already rattled earlier in the night, failed to reset.
Another minute, another blow. Mothersille, ice-cold again, collected the ball and finished low to claim his second of the evening. From level to 5-3 in the blink of an eye. The young Blues, who had poured so much into the fightback, suddenly looked drained.
In stoppage time, Mothersille completed his hat-trick, applying the final touch to a ruthless Stockport display. A night that had threatened to become a statement of Everton resilience instead turned into a harsh lesson in game management.
Player ratings
- George Pickford – 5
Produced decent stops to deny Adigun and Mandron, but a goalkeeper beaten six times will always feel bruised. Will be especially frustrated with the opener after getting a hand to Mothersille’s effort, and one poor kick straight into Mandron summed up a ragged evening. - George Finney – 5
Honest shift from the teenager who spent time on loan at Ayr United, but he looked every inch a work in progress. Not the answer to Everton’s wider right-back issues and exposed at times by Stockport’s pressure. - William Tamen – 4
A captain’s nightmare. Helped Tranmere Rovers stay in the Football League last season, yet here he was dispossessed for County’s second and nutmegged by Adigun for the third. An earlier loose pass to Ryan Rydel set the tone for a difficult night. - Luis Gardner – 5
Never fully in sync with Tamen in the first-half chaos. Avoided the glaring errors, but one ambitious diagonal pass sailed miles off target and summed up his uncertainty. - Joshua Van Schoor – 5
Pinned back for long spells and rarely able to break forward as he has in recent outings. Booked for a challenge on Mothersille that had home fans baying for red. - Harvey Foster – 5
From scoring in the senior side’s 4-0 win at Dundee to chasing shadows at Edgeley Park. Struggled to get close enough to affect the game. - Harry Brookes – 5
Overrun in midfield before the break as County controlled the centre. Stayed on long enough to be part of the early second-half surge, but was the first Everton player replaced. - Braiden Graham – 9
Outstanding. Switched to the right and lit up the night for Everton. Created Catesby’s goal with a smart cross, buried his penalty with authority, then bent in a glorious equaliser from the edge of the box. The brightest spark by some distance. - Melvin Matos – 7
Involved from the first whistle. Suffered a head injury, returned bandaged and in a blank shirt after blood covered his original. Threw himself into challenges, collided with Arttu Hoskonen, went down under Lewis Fiorini’s tackle and then won the penalty after Moxon’s foul. A chaotic but influential outing. - Joel Catesby – 8
A goal that meant more than just a number on the scoreboard. After last season’s sickening leg break in this very competition, his composed finish from Graham’s pass was a powerful personal moment. - Ceiran Loney – 5
Toiled without reward. Went one-on-one with Ashby-Hammond but lacked conviction as the keeper cleared. Later, when Justin Clarke teed him up, he couldn’t find the angle on his shot.
Substitutes
- Jack Patterson (on 57 for Harry Brookes) – 6
Injected energy and legs into midfield for the final half-hour. - Justin Clarke (on 70 for Joel Catesby) – 7
Lively cameo. Crafted a clear opening for Loney and tried to drag Everton forward late on. - Aled Thomas (on 83 for Luis Gardner)
Introduced just before Stockport’s fifth. Little time to influence events. - Omari Benjamin (on 83 for Melvin Matos)
Arrived as the game slipped away. Minimal involvement. - Jonathan Nsangou (on 83 for Ceiran Loney)
Another late change with the contest effectively decided.
Everton’s youngsters leave Edgeley Park with bruises and a brutal scoreline, but also with one clear question hanging over them: can they turn Graham’s brilliance and that fleeting comeback into something more durable as this EFL Trophy campaign unfolds?
