Ki-Jana Hoever's sumptuous volley, Andre Vidigal's brace in first-half added time and Jacob Brown's late tap-in gave new-look Stoke City their first home win since 10 March with victory over 10-man Rotherham United.
Midfielder Hoever launched his second loan spell at Stoke from Wolves in glorious fashion by firing Josh Laurent's left-wing cross beyond Viktor Johansson via the crossbar, but the hosts struggled to match their dominance of possession and succession of corners with attempts on goal during the first 45 minutes.
July signing Vidigal struck twice in six additional minutes, pouncing on Ben Wilmot's header and lashing in the rebound from a Johansson save to send Stoke on their way to victory on the opening day for only the second time in 14 seasons.