Having gone 161 days without defeat, Notts County's loss to Dagenham and Redbridge feels that little bit more pivotal in the title race following some of the decisions made at Meadow Lane.
The Magpies' second defeat of the season was overshadowed by some questionable officiating by the match officials - and it seems unfair that a title race for the ages could be decided by the ineptness of on-the-field situations, something unfortunately Notts have become accustomed to witnessing during the course of the campaign.
But when one unbeaten run ends, another one begins, and Notts will have to be near-perfect to keep their hopes of automatic promotion alive, starting with their preparations for Bromley next weekend.
READ MORE: Luke Williams makes Sam Austin admission following Notts County defeat
Here are the key talking points from the defeat at Meadow Lane.
Pivotal decisions prove costly
While not wanting to dwell on the refereeing decisions from the defeat, it's a hard pill to swallow given the wider implications it could have on one of the best title races the National League has ever seen.
This season has seen the Magpies on the wrong end of some decisions made by match officials, and Saturday was no different, with one incident in particular put under the microscope.
With the game ticking down and into the final ten minutes John Bostock's deep free-kick was swung in the way of Macaulay Langstaff, but as it dropped out of the sky, what can only be described as a move from WWE from Sam Ling saw the Notts number nine hauled to the ground, and upon further inspection, only had eyes for Langstaff rather than the ball.
Adam Chicksen also had appeals for a spot-kick waved away by Lewis Smith after a clumsy challenge from George Saunders inside the area, with the referee again in a fantastic position to watch the situation unfold, only to keep his whistle firmly away from his lips.
And that frustration at the decisions made by the match officials seemed to boil over following the full-time whistle - with emotions high, Aden Baldwin made his feelings known as he wagged his finger towards Smith, eventually resulting in a straight red card that will see an important player potentially miss three crucial games in the end of season run-in.
This title race is still far from over with Wrexham still needing to win their two games in hand to regain a comfortable lead over Luke Williams' men, but you feel as though the decisions made on Saturday evening could be pivotal in who goes up, and who has to fight for promotion in the play-offs.
The right rotation?
While Williams very rarely gets his team selection wrong, even he admitted that might have been the case in his post-match assessment of the defeat at Meadow Lane.
The Notts boss has only kept the same starting side in consecutive matches four times this season, and two changes were made ahead of the encounter yesterday evening, with Jim O'Brien and the returning Aaron Nemane preferred to Sam Austin and Jodi Jones.
The play in the first half lacked that intensity and pace when looking to progress forward in possession, often struggling to break down the visitors' deep back-line we have become accustomed to seeing from teams visiting Meadow Lane this season.
And that was evident in the equaliser, with Rodrigues taking too long on the ball which allowed Dagenham to break - eventually resulting in Balanta firing the ball home and bringing his finger to his lips in front of the KOP 15 minutes before half-time.
The Notts boss needed just 11 second-half minutes to freshen up his attack, with Jones and Austin introduced just shy of the hour-mark, and their impact was felt almost immediately when stepping out onto the Meadow Lane turf.
Within the first minute of coming on, Jones sent a curling effort from 25 yards out agonisingly wide of the far post, with Austin also involved two minutes later as his low drive into the area somehow managed to evade the onrushing Macaulay Langstaff and Nemane inside the area.
The substitutions inspired the dominant second-half display but unfortunately couldn't find a way past a quite heroic defensive display - however did their introduction come too little, too late?
A game of fine margins
On another day, the Magpies could have scored six or seven with the number of opportunities they mustered during a dominant second-half display. They hit the post twice and had several efforts cleared off the line, but football is a game of luck and that was certainly on the visitor's side at Meadow Lane.
Notts had more than enough opportunities to gain the three points their second-half display merited, but that is no discredit to the heart and desire shown by the Dagenham players to pick up just a third win in eight games to further boost their play-off ambitions.
The gamble of sacking Daryl McMahon just a day before their encounter at Meadow Lane looked to favour the Magpies, but Steve Gritt and Dave Jupp further proved that the 'new manager bounce' is certainly a thing in football, inspiring arguably their standout result thus far this season.
While draws this season have almost felt like defeats given the remarkable title race on our hands, it will be interesting to see just how strong the mentality is within this group of players and how they will react with a week to prepare for another tough away test against Bromley next Saturday.
Counter attack vulnerability
After seemingly stamping out those defensive mistakes, once again Notts gave away two avoidable goals that played right into the hands of Dagenham's gameplan.
With the visitors sitting deep and soaking up the pressure provided by Williams' side, two breakaway goals proved the difference to dampen the Magpies' hopes of finishing in that one automatic promotion spot.
With Ruben Rodrigues gifting Dagenham possession in midfield after taking too long with the ball, the lively Matt Robinson strode away with the ball, linking up brilliantly with Ling before sliding the ball into the box for Balanta to give his side a priceless equaliser.
But with Notts pressing for a winner late on and the attacking substitutes made, Matty Palmer looked to thread a pass into Rodrigues but was again cut out by Robinson - with numbers forward, it allowed the visitors to capitalise, as Robinson set free Inih Effiong behind Connell Rawlinson to smash a left-footed effort beyond Sam Slocombe to place a Dagger in the heart of his former side.
While the blame is quickly pointed towards the officials on the evening, Notts' inability to defend a situation that had already occurred during the first half eventually came back to bite them - something Williams will be extremely disappointed about when he reviews the footage of the encounter.
An unbelievable run
While the overriding feeling coming away from the game will be one of disappointment, it offers perspective on just how incredible Notts' form has been since September.
If you'd have told anyone after the defeat at Dorking Wanderers that this group of players would go 25 games unbeaten, accumulate 66 points, and score 67 goals, many wouldn't have believed you.
But this talented squad has continued to defy all expectations in their quest for National League glory, with 11 cup finals awaiting them - starting with their trip to Bromley next weekend.
This season has already thrown up several surprises, with this title race far from over - and this group of players needs our supporters more than ever to push them across the line to achieve the end goal everyone involved craves.
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