CPD Y Rhyl 1879 thrashed Llandudno Swifts 9-0 in their first competitive match of the 2024-25 season in a JD Welsh Cup first round qualifier on Saturday (July 27).
The Lilywhites had new recruits Josh Cooke, Danny Clarke, Tom Kemp and Jon Bravo in the starting XI.
The deadlock was broken in the 29th minute when club captain Reece Fairhurst found competitive debutant Kemp on the edge of the box, who found the bottom-left corner with a well-executed drive.
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Just four minutes later, it was the prolific Callum Parry who found the top right corner with a fantastic effort from 25 yards.
The second half began in ferocious fashion, with Parry netting his second of the match within 60 seconds of the restart.
On 57 minutes, it was Casey Faulkner who was next to secure a place on the scoresheet, latching onto a ball from James Jones who struck the ball across goal, making it 4-0.
Just one minute later, it was Alex Jones who found the back of the net, firing home from close range to make it 5-0 with 32 minutes left to play.
With the game now looking secure, Lilywhites boss Gareth Thomas opted to then ring the changes, getting as many minutes in legs as possible.
It was substitute Jonny Taylor who made an immediate impact, first firing home from close range, then finding the back of the net from 30 yards with a fantastic curling effort into the top right corner.
There was time for to more goals from the Lilywhites - Kemp got his second of the game firing in from close range, before Parry secured his hat-trick with a composed finish into the bottom right corner.
CPD Y Rhyl 1879 added: “Our thoughts are with visiting goalkeeper Michael Parkinson who was stretchered off in the second half.
“We wish Michael a speedy recover from all at CPD Y Rhyl 1879.”
A jubilant Thomas said: “We controlled the whole game, but I’m really pleased with how we stayed patient in the first half.
“Credit to the lads - they took on board the half-time message, scoring seven second-half goals - overall, a really pleasing result.”
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