Kyle Turner has put his debut nightmare behind him with maximum points since returning from suspension - and the midfielder aims to continue that record against Montrose.

The Dunfermline man joined Airdrie on loan last month in a move which saw Kyle MacDonald remain at East End Park, but his first match against Peterhead didn’t go to plan when he was shown a red card after just three minutes.

Despite that setback, Turner has returned to feature in recent wins over Dumbarton and Falkirk, and is relishing his new environment.

“I’ve really enjoyed it since I came in, the boys have all made me feel welcome.

“Obviously my first game isn’t one to remember after getting sent off, but it’s a great club with great people and I’m enjoying it.”

The match at Balmoor, Airdrie’s first after the League One restart, ended in defeat for the Diamonds and was followed by losses to Partick Thistle and Cove Rangers.

Turner’s return to the starting line-up has coincided with a turnaround in form, with six points from last Thursday’s trip to Dumbarton and Tuesday’s home match against leaders Falkirk.

The 23-year-old is aware of the importance of those victories.

“They were massive wins, because to be honest they were must-win games.

“We knew if we wanted to get to the play-offs we would have to pick up our results and get some points on the board quickly.”

With Turner moving on from Dunfermline at the end of the season, the former Stranraer star could be forgiven for having one eye on the future, but he insists he’s fully concentrated on improving the fortunes of his current club.

“All I’m focusing on now is helping Airdrie to try to get out of League One.

“We know it’s going to be tough, we just have to keep going and doing our best to win games, and we’ll see where we end up.”

That continues with a trip to Links Park to face Montrose on Saturday. The Diamonds know that a win would see them leapfrog their hosts into third place, but Kyle expects a tricky tie.

“It’s always tough going up to Montrose.

“We know it’s going to be a battle, and we need to be ready for it if we’re to come back down the road with a big three points.”

Stewart Petrie’s side have also seen their form stutter since the restart, with defeat at Falkirk followed by draws with Clyde and Dumbarton either side of a good win against East Fife.

The Gable Endies hold the upper hand between the sides this season, with Russell McLean scoring the only goal of the December meeting at the Penny Cars Stadium.

Diamonds boss Ian Murray wants his side to maintain their winning run.

“It’s another hard game, but on the back of two good wins it’s another chance to push for the top end of the table.

“Montrose have been a consistently good side over the last two seasons, so it’s a really tough place to go.”

Airdrie are almost at full fitness ahead of the trip to Angus, but the game looks to have come too soon for Paul Paton, who expects to spend another week on the sidelines.

Referee Peter Stuart will be a familiar face to the Diamonds players - the whistler also took charge of Airdrie’s match at Cove Rangers little over a week ago.

Fans can watch the match live on Montrose’s streaming service using the link below.