Notts County stepped up their preparations for their crunch National League play-off semi final later this month with a 3-1 defeat against Dorking Wanderers.
Boss Neal Ardley gave 45 minutes to each of his players for the friendly at Meadow Lane which was set-up to help their match fitness ahead of their quest to return to the Football League at the first attempt.
It was Notts' first competitive match since the end of March and Ardley used it as a fitness exercise against Dorking who are challenging for promotion themselves in the National League South play-offs.
The match was played behind closed doors due to the coronavirus pandemic and assistant boss Neil Cox said it was a valuable 90 minutes.
'It was a good test for us," he said.
"They put us under a lot of pressure and we saw one or two things that we needed to see.
"It was a good work out and was all about getting 45 minutes into the players' legs on a big pitch.
"They put us under good pressure, got tight to us and they run harder than us.
"But they are a week ahead of us.
"The main thing about the game was that we didn't get any injuries.
"They picked up two or three which is disappointing for them."
With football fans unable to attend games until given the all-clear by the government, the game against Dorking was played at an empty Meadow Lane.
The Magpies have drawn considerable power and energy from their supporters this season particularly at home where they have lost just twice in the league this season.
But the absence of atmosphere allowed Cox to be able to hear what his players were saying and he said some need to be more vocal.
"When there are 8,000 or 9,000 in the stadium, you can hardly hear the players and you can hear some people talking," he said.
"And the boys who don't say a lot, say even less.
"They need to stand up and be counted so when that semi-final comes we are all ready to go.
"The senior pros will be important because they have promotions under their belt.
"But everybody needs to be vocal."
