Notts County returned to the third tier of English football in emphatic style with a 3-0 win over Salford City.
Famously the oldest football club in the world, the Magpies ended an 11-year absence from League One, courtesy of goals from Alassana Jatta, Lucas Ness and Jodi Jones in the searing Bank Holiday heat at Wembley.
They last played third tier football in 2014/15, but after relegation, fell as far as the National League before securing a return to the Football League in 2022/23 via the playoffs.
There couldn't have been a better start for the Meadow Lane side, taking the lead just after the half-hour mark when Jatta was played in behind the Salford defence and decisively found the bottom right corner.
Just 13 minutes later, Ness produced a towering header to double his side's advantage; a crucial goal given its proximity to the half-time break.
From then on in, Salford struggled to find an answer to Notts County's dominance and, with 20 minutes remaining in the contest, Jones capped off a memorable day for supporters of the Magpies by latching onto a brilliant Conor Grant pull back to put the game out of sight.
Notts County v Salford Match Stats
Notts County | 3-0 | Salford City |
59% | Possession | 41% |
7 | Shots | 6 |
5 | Shots on Target | 2 |
2 | Goalkeeper Saves | 2 |
13 | Fouls Committed | 19 |
2 | Corners | 3 |
416 | Total Passes | 275 |
20 | Total Tackles | 18 |
39 | Clearances | 20 |
2 | Yellow Cards | 2 |
0 | Red Cards | 0 |
