As first-night performances go, this is one new City boss Steve Coppell and his red-faced charges will want to forget in a hurry.

Ashton Gate was packed to the rafters with expectant supporters buoyed by the arrival of one of the most successful Championship managers in the business and the chance to see England number one David James in action for the first time in a City shirt.

But the feel-good factor engendered by a summer of mounting expectation evaporated with indecent haste in an 11-minute period either side of half time as plucky Millwall, no respecters of reputation and eager to make a good impression upon their return to the English second tier, scored three times to throw a giant-sized spanner into the works.

In short, just about everything that could have gone wrong for the new manager, did go wrong. So much so, that acting Robins captain Cole Skuse, deputising for the injured Louis Carey, emerged from a shell-shocked dressing room to offer a heart-felt apology to supporters in the aftermath of what can only be described as a horror show.

"I want to apologise to the fans, because that was poor," admitted the 23-year-old Bristolian, who was brave enough to face the media and offer a brutally honest assessment of his team's failings.

Refusing to hide behind the injury-enforced absence of seven players who would normally expect to feature in the 18-man match-day squad, Skuse conceded: "We were way off it and got exactly what we deserved – nothing.

"To have worked so hard in pre-season, to have prepared as we have and then produce a performance like that is bitterly disappointing.

"We conceded sloppy goals from set-pieces and were way below par. We know it, the manager knows it and we are going to have to work very hard to put things right before the next game against Southend on Tuesday."

City's no-show overshadowed what should have been a proud day for life-long City fan Skuse, who wore the captain's armband for the first time in a competitive fixture.

He said: "I was honoured to lead the side out, but the fact we lost 3-0 takes all the gloss off it as far as I'm concerned. I'm a Bristol boy, my mum and dad were here to see me and being captain meant a lot to me. But we just never got going on the day."

These are early days for Coppell, whose job has been made more difficult by the twin requirements of assimilating six new signings while waiting for a number of key players to return from injury, among them last season's top-scoring strikers Nicky Maynard and Danny Haynes, whose presence was sorely missed on this occasion.

He openly admits he has no idea what his strongest side might be. Given the straightening circumstances that have stayed his hand during a pre-season programme that has thrown up frustration upon frustration, how could he be expected to know?

Notwithstanding these mitigating circumstances, City fans had every right to expect more from the 11 players selected to launch the Coppell era in front of a full-house crowd.

City proved fallible when defending set-piece routines, lacked a presence in the final third and were ultimately overrun in midfield by well-organised and committed opponents who won pretty much as they liked.

Debutant James could not be faulted for the shortcomings of those deployed in front of him and England's World Cup keeper was powerless to do anything to prevent the goals that stunned Ashton Gate into silence.

His first meaningful action was to fish the ball out of the back of the net when his defence failed to cope with an in-swinging corner four minutes before half-time. On loan from Ipswich Town, wily campaigner Kevin Lisbie sent a shot cannoning off the inside of an upright and careering across goal where centre-back Darren Ward timed his arrival to perfection to score from close range.

Left winger Danny Schofield doubled the lead three minutes after the break, demonstrating quick feet, sound control and an eye for goal when cutting inside to out-manoeuvre Nicky Hunt and Liam Fontaine and beat James with a shot of slide-rule precision that curled just inside the far post.

And worse followed for the home side, whose inability to repel attacking set-pieces was again punished on the hour mark, Lisbie directing a free header against the crossbar at the near post and Lions captain Paul Robinson profiting from the rebound at close quarters.

Now in complete control of the game, rampant Millwall continued to punch giant-sized holes in a porous defence and James was required to perform a startling reaction save to keep out James Henry's bullet header and avoid further humiliation.

Not even the sending off of Lions debutant Darren Carter, harshly dismissed by referee Michael Oliver for a second yellow card offence in the 64th minute, offered succour to a City side that was now being out-played in just about every department.

David Clarkson threatened a recovery of sorts, his angled shot deflecting off keeper David Forde and striking the outside of the post, but City appeared incapable of breaching a well-drilled Millwall defence which coped supremely comfortably with what little was thrown at it.

Just when Coppell must have felt things could not get any worse, they did. Sent on in place of Jamal Campbell-Ryce in order to facilitate a change in formation from 4-3-3 to 4-4-2 and provide much-needed support for the isolated Clarkson, new loan signing Sam Vokes departed the scene of his debut on a stretcher after damaging a hamstring in the act of stretching for the ball. He lasted just 13 minutes and almost certainly faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

Fellow new-boy Damion Stewart, the Jamaican centre-back, will miss tomorrow's Carling Cup first round tie against Southend United, after being shown a second yellow card followed by a red for an apparently innocuous challenge on Lisbie deep into time added on.

His absence will serve to further exacerbate the problems that face Coppell as he begins his Championship campaign.

City (4-3-3): James, Hunt, Stewart, Fontaine, McAllister; Elliott, Skuse, Campbell-Ryce (Vokes 54, Jackson 67)); Sproule (G Williams 80), Clarkson, Adomah.

Millwall (4-4-2): Forde; Dunne, Ward, Robinson, Barron; Henry (Hackett 80), Trotter (Laird 90), Carter, Schofield; Morison (Harris 84), Lisbie.