After Torquay United's bumper festive fixtures with Forest Green Rovers, which saw the Gulls pick up four points and score nine goals in the process as they won 4-3 and drew 5-5, we will now look back at what we learned about Kevin Nicholson's side.
1. Dan Sparkes is a goal scoring wing wizard.
As a Braintree Town player, Sparkes famously netted a hat-trick for the Iron in their 5-1 win at Plainmoor against United in the 2014-15 season. In the current 2016-17 campaign he is the Gulls' joint-top scorer alongside Kieffer Moore with five after netting twice against Forest Green on New Year's Day.
The signing of Sparkes represents quite a coup for manager Kevin Nicholson, as the former Histon winger could have quite easily followed Danny Cowley, his former manager at Braintree, to Lincoln City last summer. Having scored 19 times for the Iron in the past two seasons, with returns of nine and ten in each campaign he is on course for a similar return this time around with the Gulls.
2. Width is key for United.
As well as the five goal that the aforementioned Sparkes has scored on loan AFC Wimbledon wide man also netted a goal in each game. Width played a key part in the Gulls' revival last season, which was provided by full back pairing Durrell Berry and Dan Butler in their 4-4-2 diamond system. However, with Berry has been missing through a broken leg since March and Butler having departed for Newport County, width has been hard to come by for the Gulls but the arrival of Fitzpatrick on the right has given United a new dimension to their play and has allowed Sparkes to play his natural game down the left.
3. The Gulls raise their game against the top sides.
The four points from the possible six that the Gulls could have won against Forest Green is part of 14 they have won from a possible 24 against the current top six sides in the National League. Having failed to take any points in 2-1 defeats against Lincoln City and Tranmere Rovers, United did the double over Dagenham and Redbridge - earning six points in the process, defeated Dover Athletic and picked up a point against former manager Paul Cox's Barrow side.
4. Lightning can strike twice.
The Gulls' Boxing Day success over Forest Green was the second time in the space of 12 months on Boxing Day. United famously beat Rovers 4-1 on the feast of Stephen in the 2014-15 campaign, a result that gave the Plainmoor faithful hope that the Gulls could make a improbable escape from relegation at the time when they were adrift at the bottom of the league.
5. A small amount of investment could go a long way.
Finances have been tight at Plainmoor in recent season's following United's relegation from the Football League and competing with teams who possess budgets far in excess of their own, including that of Forest Green who are, of course, bankrolled by Green Energy tycoon Dale Vince.
Following the club's recent takeover by Riviera Stadium Ltd, after which they pledged to bring 'a high level of football entertainment' to Torquay, surely these results prove that a small amount of money made available to manager Kevin Nicholson could make a real difference to the Gulls' fortunes.
With the sale of striker of Nathan Blissett to near neighbours Plymouth Argyle set to go through soon for a fee in the region of £30,000, the monies raised from the fee and freeing up of Blissett's salary from the wage bill could give Nicholson some room to strength his squad and edge United closer to an eventual return to the Football League.
