The dust has just about settled on Cardiff City's latest ill-fated derby-day outing.
It was a day that, from a Bluebirds point of view, will forever be defined by the early red card to Callum Robinson. There's little point in once again chewing over the stupidity of the Republic of Ireland's actions at the Swansea.com Stadium, but it clearly changed the course of the game.
It might yet change the course of Mark Hudson's reign.
But for all the understandable criticism around his dismissal on Sunday, the former West Bromwich Albion striker remains Cardiff's most potent attacking weapon at the moment.
Prior to his monumental brain fart, Robinson had looked highly impressive in leading the line for the Bluebirds. He holds the ball up well, his movement is excellent and he's struck up a genuine understanding with some of his team-mates in the final third.
It's for that reason that his upcoming three-match suspension will be seen as such a significant blow by Hudson, whose side have gone around four-and-a-half hours without scoring.
The interim boss will be eager for a reaction when his side entertain Rotherham United at home next weekend, while the visit of Watford and a long trip to Sunderland also await.
Finding a way to plug the gap left by Robinson's absence will undoubtedly be the main challenge over the next couple of weeks or so. Indeed, it might well prove to be the biggest challenge of Hudson's reign so far.
Kion Etete, who's seen his spell in the capital stunted by injury thus far, was the striker called upon from the bench late on during Sunday's defeat, which suggests he might well be the man behind Robinson in the pecking order.
The former Spurs man hasn't started a single league game since his move in the summer, and has only had a handful of opportunities to impress from the bench.
Now, Hudson will be hoping that the 20-year-old can make his mark, and kickstart his Bluebirds career.
Max Watters is another name that will surely enter the conversation, although he has admittedly already had chances to assert himself. Steve Morison fiercely defended the striker during the early stages of the season, and kept him firmly in the first-team picture even when the deal bringing Etete to the club was finalised.
But it's probably fair to say the former Crawley Town man still has a point to prove. He hasn't had much of a look-in since Hudson took charge, with a single appearance off the bench against Burnley so far his only taste of first-team action under the current regime.
That said, Hudson, whose own future is anything but certain, has seemingly still left the door open for a return at some point.
"I think everyone’s in our plans," he told WalesOnline recently. "You look at what the team are achieving. They have to showcase themselves every single day. That’s what the standards are and you’ve got to want to be on the pitch.
"That’s all you can ask. It’s not just one player it’s every player. That’s the importance of the squad."
Then again. In terms of goals, there is perhaps a stand out candidate. Mark Harris, who will clearly be intent on catching the eye of Rob Page for the Wales squad ahead of next month's World Cup, has two goals to his name this season, having made five starts.
But he perhaps doesn't carry himself as a traditional centre-forward. Indeed, his pace and ability to run the lines and pull defenders out of shape arguably makes him better suited to a position out wide.
Harris certainly needs to add more goals to his game, but few can dispute his encouraging progress over the last few months, with Hudson's predecessor even noting the forward's hard work on the training ground.
"I was really pleased," Morison said of Harris after the win over Middlesbrough earlier in the season.
"He has been fantastic, he works his socks off every day, sometimes with no reward. Strikers get pigeon-holed with their goals, people don’t really care who works hard or does a job for the team, that’s the life of a forward player. I thought his goal and all-round play were excellent.
"His hold-up play has got better and he’s taking a lot more contact than he used to. He is making much more intelligent runs and there’s definitely a better player this season than what we had previously.
"That goes down to his effort on the training ground."
But Hudson, of all people, knows that hard work is the bare minimum at this level. Goals and, of course, results will ultimately prove to be the real barometer for success.
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