For the third season in succession, Torquay United find themselves in a National League relegation battle.
Keen observers of the club's history will surely know that the Gulls have experienced a great deal of volatility and turbulence; in the 1956-57 season United missed out on promotion to the 'old' Division Two to Ipswich Town on goal average, a year later they finished 21st in Division Three South and became founder members of the newly formed Division Four.
In the late 1960's and early 1970's, United enjoyed the most successful spell in their history. However, by the 1974-75 season the then Chairman Tony Boyce stated that the Gulls were in danger out going out of business in an appeal to the South Devon public and Torbay Council.
The sale of goalkeeper Mike Mahoney to Newcastle United for £30,000 proved to be a timely lifesaver.
Fast forward to the mid-1980's, Dave Webb took over ownership of the club from Boyce which proved to be the start of a period of decline which saw the Gulls survive as a Football League club in the 1984-85 and 1985-86 seasons through the old re-election system.
A year later the canine intervention of Bryn the Police Dog inspired another Great Escape against Crewe Alexandra, as he sunk his teeth into Jim McNichol. The extra time added on enabled Paul Dobson to score the all important equaliser to ensure that the Gulls didn't become the first club to be automatically relegated from the Football League.
This period was followed by the appointment of Cyril Knowles as manager, who led the Gulls to the brink of promotion in the 1987-88 campaign which saw them miss out in a two-legged Play-off final against Swansea City.
Then a year later United reached the Sherpa Van Trophy final where they were defeated by Bolton Wanderers after seeing off a Steve Bull-led Wolves in the Southern Area final. By the end of the year, Knowles had left Plainmoor and was replaced by former Plymouth Argyle manager Dave Smith.
Two years later, the Gulls' 25-year wait for promotion came to an end as United beat Blackpool on penalties, after drawing 2-2 in normal time, but this was followed by immediate relegation and the intervention of Neil Warnock as caretaker manager spared the Gulls a second consecutive demotion in the 1992-93 season.
The following season, under Warnock's successor Don O'Riordan, United reached the Play-offs again but lost to Preston North End in the semi-finals. However, two years later Stevenage Borough's ground not being up to league standard saved United from relegation to the Conference.
However, under Kevin Hodges, United reached the Play-offs again in the 1997-98 season where they beaten 1-0 by Colchester United at Wembley.
There was more last day drama at the end of the 2000-01 campaign for the Gulls, as they faced Barnet at Underhill in a final day decider which United won 3-2 with goals from Jason Rees, Kevin Hill and David Graham.
Three years later United travelled to the South East in different circumstances, under the management of Leroy Rosenior, as they faced Southend United in a bid to secure automatic promotion at the expense of Huddersfield Town.
A 2-1 win courtesy of goals from Steve Woods and David Graham clinched third place in Division Three and condemned Huddersfield to the Play-offs, as United went up automatically for the first time since 1966.
Sadly, as in the 1991-92 season, the Gulls stay in the third tier of English football lasted for only one season and it took another Great Escape under Ian Atkins in the following 2005-06 campaign to prevent them from dropping into non-league football.
Nevertheless it turned out to be a stay of execution as the 2006-07 season saw United drop out of the league for the first time ever in a season that saw them appoint three managers (Atkins, Lubos Kubik and Keith Curle) as well as three chairman (Mike Bateson, Chris Roberts and Keith Richardson before Bateson returned to the helm).
This was then followed by Leroy Rosenior's infamous ten minute spell as manager as a new consortium headed by Alex Rowe, which included lottery winner Paul Bristow, bought the club and appointed Paul Buckle as manager.
Two years, in 2009, the Gulls were back in the Football League as they defeated Cambridge United 2-0 at Wembley through goals from Chris Hargreaves and Tim Sills.
The Gulls continued to progress on their return to the league as they reached the 2011 League Two Play-off final where they were beaten 1-0 by Stevenage - in what was Paul Buckle's last game in charge as he left for Bristol Rovers.
Nevertheless after the appointment of Martin Ling as Buckle's replacement, United continued to progress as they reached the Play-offs again - after missing out on automatic promotion - in the 2011-12 season, as they were beaten by Cheltenham Town in the semi-finals.
Unfortunately, following the departure of Ling and his successor Alan Knill, United would drop out of the Football League again at the end of the 2013-14 season.
A year later, the board which was made up of the consortium that took over the club in 2007, and now headed by Thea Bristow, the widow of Paul, handed over ownership of the club to a local board headed by Dave Phillips, with former striker Dean Edwards as Director of Football.
The new changes also saw former Mansfield Town boss Paul Cox appointed as manager in succession to Hargreaves, but Cox only lasted for ten matches as he resigned over a contract dispute.
He was succeeded as manager by Kevin Nicholson who, after an indifferent start, led the Gulls to safety after being 12 points adrift by mid-February, which was secured with a 2-0 win over Bromley in their penultimate away game of the 2015-16 campaign.
The following season, in which current owners Gaming International assumed ownership of the club, United found themselves in another relegation battle. However, three successive wins against Braintree Town, Dover Athletic and North Ferriby United saw the Gulls maintain their National League.
In the current campaign the threat of part-time regional football for the first time since the 1926-27 season is once again looming large. It is not beyond current manager Gary Owers and his squad to keep United up and steer them away from relegation to National League South, but everyone at the club from the boardroom downwards needs to be pulling in the same direction.
And anyone who is not up for that fight is best advised to step aside.
