For about 90 seconds on Saturday, I’d convinced myself that Everton had actually won their match versus Bournemouth. In the 95th minute, Ross Barkley somehow managed to put away the go-ahead goal- dribbling around Bournemouth defenders, laying the ball off to Romelu Lukaku before receiving it and tucking it underneath the outstretched arm of the substitute goalkeeper Ryan Allsop. An hour prior to this, Everton were firmly in control of the match and boasting a two goal advantage, yet after a dismal second half that saw the game draw level, it seemed like Barkley had rescued three points at the death- a sentiment likely shared by the traveling away fans, who rushed the pitch in excitement.

It wasn’t to be. While the goal occurred with less than 20 seconds remaining in stoppage time, referee Kevin Friend decided to allow for additional stoppage time to compensate for the time spent dealing with the pitch invasion- a decision that Bournemouth capitalized on, as Junior Stanislas connected with a Charlie Daniels’ cross to tie the game once more.

What should have been a comfortable victory for Everton based on the first half results turned into dropped points against a team many expected them to defeat. Everton had been flying high after successfully navigating the league’s toughest start, and were coming off of massive victories against Sunderland (6-2) and Aston Villa (4-0).

However, this shouldn’t be entirely unexpected.

While Everton boast some talented players on their squad, the majority of the talent is encased within their young players. Ross Barkley, John Stones, Romelu Lukaku, and Gerard Deulofeu are all under the age of 22, yet all are regarded as having great potential. As with all other players who this label is applied to, this doesn’t mean that they aren’t quality players right now – It simply means that they’re not done improving yet. It means that they will make mistakes, and that they’ll be inconsistent.

Their quality is so blindingly obvious, it’s hard not to notice. During a 9 touch, 4 pass sequence against Aston Villa, all four players had a vital role in the opening goal.

Stones plays a perfect 20-yard pass to the feet of Barkley, who in a single motion, backheels the ball to Lukaku. His first touch is to pass the ball into the feet of the on-rushing James McCarthy, who takes a couple of touches before laying the ball off to a wide open Deulofeu. After a moment’s hesitation, Deulofeu shoots and has his shot blocked, only to have had Barkley continue his run and tap the rebound home.

Yet for every moment of brilliance a young player is a part of, there’s often a corresponding low point. Ross Barkley missed almost half of the 2014-15 season with knee injuries, and was unable to find good form for the other half. Romelu Lukaku scored 10 goals in the Premier League last term, yet he too often ended an attacking move with being dispossessed or a shot not on target. Gerard Deulofeu was criticized for his defensive work rate during his loan spell at Everton in 2013-14, and was chastised for not being a team player during a similar spell at Sevilla last season. John Stones began the 2014-15 season with a string of mediocre results, characterized by defensive mistakes and bad passes.

These things happen because that’s what happens to young players. Moments of brilliance should be appreciated, and moments of failure should be taken with a grain of salt.

So while the blame for Saturday’s draw with Bournemouth could be attributed to many sources, youth is the main culprit – And if the reason that a team draws a game is because its’ talented young players are inconsistent, that’s not a bad problem to have.