Notts County were beaten 2-1 by Mansfield Town in the Central League Cup at Rainworth Miners Welfare.
Dan Leivers was in charge of a youthful Notts team and saw his side fall behind inside four minutes to an experienced Stags line-up as Danny Rose latched on to a loose ball inside the area and fired past Curtis Hall.
The lead was doubled on nine minutes when Kevan Hurst curled a 25-yard free-kick into the top corner.
To their credit, the young Magpies battled valiantly and made it much more of an even contest after a shaky start, creating opportunities as Montel Gibson blasted over from 18 yards before Jack McMillan saw a low effort palmed around the post by Scott Shearer.
Pat Hoban, who came on as a substitute during the 0-0 draw during the first-team fixture on Saturday, forced a smart save from Hall with a snapshot as the Stags went into the break with a two-goal advantage.
Hurst came close to adding a second when his fierce shot from 30 yards whistled narrowly over the crossbar before Hoban headed over from close range.
Sam Osborne pulled a goal back for Notts, tapping in from a free-kick to halve the deficit and give Leivers' team hope of producing a comeback.
But the Magpies ran out of time, leaving them with a win and a defeat from their opening two Central League Cup fixtures.
Notts: Curtis Hall, Luther Wildin, Declan Dunn, Dominic Brown-Hill, Jordon Richards, Peter Dearle (Nathan Cobain 46'), Sam Osborne, Alex Howes, Montel Gibson (Remaye Campbell 80'), Jack McMillan, Tamar Clayton-Naute.
Notts' 2016-17 Central League Cup campaign (group stage)
Tuesday 10 January: Notts 2-1 Shrewsbury
Tuesday 17 January: Mansfield Town 2-1 Notts
Tuesday 24 January: Chesterfield v Notts, 2pm, Venue TBC
Tuesday 31 January: Notts County v Nottingham Forest, 12pm, Meadow Lane