Birmingham & Solihull Bees 28
Nottingham 41
It was difficult not to guffaw as Russell Earnshaw agonised about the defensive shortcomings that meant his team began their tenancy of Damson Park with a deflating loss.
"We liked the new turnstiles so much we thought we'd have a set on the pitch too," the director of rugby quipped as he admired the splendour of Bees' new surroundings but lamented the three-lane motorway that passed for the home midfield.
In the first half alone four times Nottingham hurtled towards the heart of the B&S rearguard and four times they sliced through and left a black-shirted body on the floor en route the line.
Teenage centre Andy Forsyth was the main beneficiary as he was waved through for a hat-trick without even having his ticket checked, usually after experienced No. 12 Ben Johnston had led the charge.
The former England threequarter enjoyed the freedom of the borough in the fourth minute when he slipped the hapless Ben Barkley and off-loaded for Forsyth to open his account.
Poor Barkley endured a wretched club and Championship debut lacking both the punch in attack with which he made his name at Stourbridge and any semblance of know-how in defence.
Having missed Johnston for the opening score he then fell off Forsyth for the fifth, though to be fair he was far from the only one of Earnshaw's men who failed to perform the most basic of requirements.
Inside him George Crook fared little better, though he at least was able to point to his excellent goal-kicking as a redeeming feature.
But even that's not enough when you operate your turnstile with as little care as that demonstrated when opposite number James Arlidge strolled past him in the second half. Sam Robinson will be champing at the bit for selection against London Welsh.
And then when you throw in the Silhillians' inability to throw in - their lineout was just as bad as it had been against Worcester eight days ago - it becomes virtually impossible to beat a side of Nottingham's know how.
Even when you have a dominance in the tight as Bees unquestionably did. Not only did their one-out and pick and drive power game prove difficult for the visitors to contain, Bees even held sway in the scrums.
The late first half penalty try, after a string of Notts infringements at a 5m scrum, had many B&S supporters shaking their heads in pleasant disbelief. It's been some time since their pack were capable of such feats.
And there were pleasing cameos from Jack Preece and Semisi Taulava once again as well as the impressive Adrian Griffiths whose athleticism around the park for such a big lad hints at a bright future.
Assuming he learns to run a lineout and his team-mates start putting ball carriers on their backside instead of waving them through like visitors to a tourist attraction.
BEES: Elliott; Hunt, Grove, Barkley (Winter 56), Culpin; Crook (Robinson 58), Brake (Petty 58); Long (Tau 53), Sammons, Halavatau (Parkins 53), Taulava, Griffiths, Connolly (Gerry 52), Preece, Hopley. Replacements: Clayton
NOTTINGHAM: Sempere; Savage, Forsyth, Johnston (Cobden 59), Jackson; Arlidge (Marshall 70), Usasz (Barnard 60); Fowkes, Youngs (Farrell 69), French (Davies 59), Kench, Raven (Baird 64), Hammond, Armes, Shaw Replacement: Barnham
Referee: Chris Sharp
