Newquay return to league action tomorrow at Mount Wise against Shepton Mallet, with a 3pm kick-off. The Peppermints have eight points from six fixtures so far, but if they are to improve on last year's sixth-placed finish, they will need to be far more consistent.
Shepton Mallet arrive from Somerset in eighth place with 10 points from a possible 18. They have already won at Liskeard and drawn at Saltash in Cornwall this season. Newquay then travel to Saltash on Tuesday night for a Cornish derby. Between tomorrow and the end of October, they face 14 outings, including 11 league games.
Manager Middleton said consistency is key during a period that will decide whether his side are in the mix at the end of the season. He said: "The boys are really looking forward to tomorrow. We’ve had two weeks off after two disappointing results and we want to put that right in front of our home crowd, put a good performance on, and more importantly get that crucial win to set us up for a very busy period during September and October."
He added: "We have a few missing for various reasons, but we need to get back to normal and get a bit of consistency going."
Elsewhere in the division, the game of the day is in Somerset as third-placed Saltash United, unbeaten in seven outings though four have been draws, visit league leaders Bridgwater United. Bridgwater are ambitious to return to the Southern League, while the young Ashes are seeking to sneak into the play-off picture after finishing eighth last year. Bridgwater have dropped just two points so far, in a 2-2 draw with Newquay, and have won their other five matches. They sit three points clear of St Blazey having played a game more. With St Blazey in FA Cup action, Saltash know a winning margin of three would see them end the day top of the table, but a point at Fairfax Park would not go amiss.
Promoted Liskeard's up and down start took a giant bump in the road on Tuesday night when they gave away a three-goal lead to lose at Ivybridge Town. Bailey Mabin's hat-trick had the Blues cruising in South Devon, but after Matt Andrew was sent off on the hour and the hosts pulled one back with 73 minutes gone, a late equaliser was followed by two injury-time strikes to leave the visitors in disbelief.
Liskeard now make their first long trip of the season up to Brislington. The Bristolians are much improved following last year's struggles. Although they have two wins from seven, both have come in the last three, and they have already played many of the promotion favourites. The two clubs met in South East Cornwall back in July, with the Blues edging a seven-goal thriller.
Torpoint have steadied the ship after three successive defeats by seeing off Bovey Tracey and Sidmouth in the space of four days. Dean Cardew's men will go for a hat-trick of victories when they welcome promotion-chasing Clevedon Town to The Mill. Clevedon were beaten 3-2 at St Blazey last weekend. They have four wins from six but also lost to Bridgwater.
Fixtures (3pm): Bridgwater United v Saltash United, Brislington v Liskeard Athletic, Ivybridge Town v Street, Newquay v Shepton Mallet, Sidmouth Town v Tavistock, Torpoint Athletic v Clevedon Town, Wellington v Bovey Tracey.
Middleton Seeks Consistency as Newquay Face Crucial Run