Burton Albion's eighth friendly of the summer saw them power past Arnold Town 9-0 and give more valuable game time to a range of players.
A diverse blend of experienced first-team faces and up-and-coming academy players lined up for the Brewers at Eagle Valley, only 24 hours after a strong Burton side had been narrowly beaten by West Bromwich Albion in the Bass Charity Vase.
Jack Livesey started in goal, with physio Nick Fenton taking his place in the side for a second time this summer at right-back, alongside central defenders Tom Naylor and Jayden Cotterill, and Damien McCrory at left back.
Ben Fox - a regular in centre midfield so far this summer - was stationed on the right wing, with Jack Hallahan partnering Matt Palmer in the centre and Reece Hutchinson taking up the left-wing berth - Joe Sbarra sat just behind Marcus Dinanga up top.
With Albion's fitness so high and a strong team named, possession was almost exclusively theirs for long spells against the step-six hosts, who compete in the East Midlands Counties League.
That gave Sbarra and Dinanga almost free licence to attack, pulling the Arnold defence left and right on the break - and the pair linked to good effect for the early opener.
Sbarra spoke after last weekend's draw with Matlock Town about his previous academy experience of linking up with Dinanga, and that bond was on show as the latter held up Fenton's long ball and laid it into the path of the former, who skipped past a marker before returning the ball across the face of goal for Dinanga to tap home.
Chances came and went on a regular basis as Burton - reaching the end of their pre-season preparations and almost in Championship shape at this stage - sent wave after wave of attacks downfield, the home keeper producing a string of good reaction saves.
Hutchinson showed some good bursts of pace and trickery down the left flank, while Fox on the opposite wing also capitalised on the chance to get forward regularly in the final third and set Sbarra through on several occasions.
It was Dinanga who doubled the visitors' advantage, though, racing ahead when a bouncing ball deceived a slipping Arnold defender and then lashing an unstoppable left-footed shot past the keeper as he ran across the edge of the box, looking for an opening.
The opening was well and truly found.
With Palmer sitting deep to take the ball off the defenders and spray it around, it allowed the rest of the midfield to stay upfield and keep the Town defence pinned back.
And Sbarra eventually benefited before the half-time whistle, having seen a couple of good chances go begging, curling a well-placed strike right into the top corner.
Things continued in the same vein after the break, with Albion's defenders forming a first line of attack rather than having to withstand any real pressure, and Livesey in the Burton goal barely afforded a touch.
Naylor kept things rolling with the fourth goal from a Palmer corner, before Palmer got in on the act himself, nicking the ball of an Arnold defender on the edge of the home box and rifling a low finish into the net.
Fitness began to tell from there, with Albion's three outfield changes - Jake Davies, Daniel Cooke and Charlie Dowd all afforded a run out after featuring against Rocester on Monday night - adding late impetus as the Town rearguard began to flag.
The sixth goal was duly brought up by Fox, moved centrally as the changes were made. He took down a high pass from Hutchinson and moved it quickly onto his left foot before drilling the ball beyond the home keeper.
The next two fell to Davies, who impressed on the right wing in that Rocester defeat.
His late cameo here was a good one as well, his first goal seeing him kill an arrowed McCrory ball with one touch before rolling a strike beyond the keeper with his second touch.
Moments later, he showed composure to convert a rebound when Hallahan's shot was saved - but the central midfielder would get his goal last up, tucking home Dinanga's low cross shot.
In truth, this was the least taxing of Burton's pre-season outings - although Arnold did not for a second let up in their intensity or willingness to keep Albion out, even though they rarely got a sniff themselves.
The fitness of this squad looks to be about there. There was no sense of them taking the foot off in the final 20 minutes either.
Transfer talk
But it will be in the next 180 minutes, against Shrewsbury Town and Leicester City, that virtually every player at Clough's disposal will look to prove how ready they are for the season ahead.
