While many are coming towards the end of their Christmas lists, Notts County are embarking on one of their own as the festive fixtures come thick and fast over the next month.
The Magpies secured progression to the fourth round of the FA Trophy with a 2-1 win over Chorley on Tuesday evening, with goals from Sam Austin and a Scott Leather own goal cancelling out Connor Hall's opener.
Luke Williams' side will now play eight times between Boxing Day and the end of January, with their postponed fixture against Barnet still yet to be rearranged in the new year.
READ MORE: Luke Williams stresses Sam Austin importance after Notts County beat Chorley
But with another win and sitting top of the National League, it proved to be the perfect early Christmas present for Notts ahead of their fixture with Oldham next Monday afternoon.
Here are the key talking points from Notts' FA Trophy win over Chorley.
Tactical switch
With Adam Chicksen unavailable following his injury against Gateshead, Williams started with both Aaron Nemane and Tobi Adebayo-Rowling in the wing-back positions, with the Frenchman operating on the left.
In the opening exchanges, Nemane struggled with the pace of opposite number Adam Henley, often being forced to play backwards with Chorley intent on doubling up on the Notts number 11.
But with a break in play following an injury, the Magpies boss decided to switch the pair and ultimately proved to be a brilliant tactical decision.
Nemane was more comfortable in his usual position on the right, causing endless amounts of problems with his pace in behind and linking up well with Sam Austin, who was superb all evening.
After being forced into a mistake leading up to Chorley's opener Adebayo-Rowling took matters into his own hands to try and atone for his error, producing a tireless display at Meadow Lane.
Something that was most impressive about his performance was his ability to cross with his weaker foot when moved out to the left-hand side. The precisions of his balls into the area merited a lot more, but further showcased the improvements he has made since the beginning of the season.
With Chicksen's injury only ruling him out for a short amount of time, Adebayo-Rowling's performance has made many fans that little bit more confident that should the Zimbabwean find himself on the sidelines again this season, that he is more than capable of deputising in that wing-back role.
Speaking to BBC Radio Nottingham on the reasoning behind the switch, Williams said: "They (Chorley) were just starting to get to grips with their opponents on both sides.
"Both of their full-backs got to grips with the characteristics of both players and then when we changed, it gave them a new problem to worry about and I think we decided that both players were comfortable and dominating their one-on-one duels so we left them where they were."
John Bostock importance
Even in the warm-up before the game, you can just see how effortless he makes football look.
Despite the Chorley midfield hounding the experienced midfielder on a number of occasions, the way in which he manoeuvred the ball with his cultured left foot made it look like there was no pressure on him at all.
Along with Austin, John Bostock's incisive passing and progression in between the lines was a level above on the night, with the added boost of the 30-year-old completing his first full 90 minutes since last April with Doncaster Rovers.
The midfielder could also count himself unlucky to not mark his first Magpies start with a goal, seeing two headers brilliantly saved by Mark Urwin in either half, furthermore highlighting the influence he can have in the final third.
Eyebrows were raised when Bostock decided to drop down to the National League following comments made about why he left Doncaster in search of playing football higher than League Two.
However, Rovers' loss is most certainly Notts' gain and Bostock could prove to be one of the most important signings in Williams' short tenure at Meadow Lane come the end of the season.
Sam Austin performance
In the words of the Notts boss following the game, Williams said that Austin had taken "a step forward" in recent weeks and that was on show with his performance on Tuesday evening.
Following two goals in the FA Cup against Coalville back in October, the midfielder added to his tally in cup competitions with a timely finish just after the half-hour mark.
Put into the side in place of the influential Ruben Rodrigues, Austin utilised the clever ball in behind we have seen on a number of occasions from the Portuguese midfielder a number of times against Chorley, allowing Nemane in particular to influence the game from the right-hand side, ultimately resulting in the winning goal on the night.
His overall performance resembled what we have seen with his introductions from the bench this season, providing that expansive energy across the midfield while linking the play between the forward players.
One moment in particular showcased his tireless work rate, producing a lung-busting run deep in the second half down the right-hand side, almost providing Ed Francis the chance to make it two goals in two games with the midfielder forcing Urwin into making another smart save.
It's unfortunate for a player of Austin's quality to not make more appearances than he has this season, as he would walk into most teams in the National League.
While his versatility has been shown of playing in the deeper midfield role, the number of players in that midfield position just shows the strength in the depth of Williams' midfield and the quality of those players.
Matty Palmer, Jim O'Brien, Quevin Castro, Geraldo Bajarmi, Rodrigues, Francis and Austin; you would feel pretty comfortable for any of those players to start in the midfield three, it's just who you start and want to keep happy which is something Williams will have to balance during the course of the season.
What would be your starting midfield three against Oldham? Let us know in the comments section...
A lucky escape
While Notts deserved to progress to the next round on the night, the outcome of the fixture may have been completely different should a decision had gone in Chorley's favour early in the second half.
In just his second start for the Magpies Brad Young was rarely tested in the opening 45 minutes, with his only contribution of note was to pick the ball out of the net following Connor Hall's well-taken finish.
But, just minutes after the restart, the Leicester loanee was forced to rush of his line after a ball over the top resulted in the Chorley goal scorer bearing down on goal.
Young was beaten to the ball and clattered into the onrushing Hall, with the Chorley bench up in arms for referee Paul Marsden to show the 20-year-old his marching orders.
While it could of easily been a red card, the referee produced just a yellow card for the Magpies 'keeper with many inside Meadow Lane fearing the worst leading up to the decision.
Fixture build up continues
With progression to the next round of the competition comes another game in a fixture-filled start to 2023.
The Magpies currently have seven matches in January, six of which come in the National League along with trying to fit their rearranged fixture with Barnet following its postponement in place of last night's FA Trophy tie.
And the start of the new year could prove pivotal for the end of Notts' domestic season, with the everyone within Williams' small squad needed to play a huge part in their expected title charge.
The likes of Ed Francis, Kairo Mitchell and Austin have all been identified as important players by the Notts boss in recent weeks despite not enjoying regular game time, but those players could be defining come the end of the season.
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