—the 5th Leicesters—was held in reserve to reinforce the 137th Infantry Brigade should their presence be required.
The first counter-attack of any magnitude took place on the front held by the 139th Brigade. At 12.30 p.m., enemy scouts were observed moving through Champignons Copse, and these men were followed by troops in artillery formation. Word of this movement was at once sent back to the Artillery, but communication between battalion and brigade was intermittent only, the lines being frequently broken by enemy shells, so that the news did not reach the Artillery until the counter-attack had commenced.
Our barrage thus fell behind the Germans, who continued to advance in waves until they reached the road running due south from Neville's Cross. From here, the enemy in small bodies moved on down the sunken road running south-west from the Cross, and managed to make their way along this road for some 500 yards before coming under heavy Lewis-gun and rifle fire from our troops east of Ramicourt. Foiled in their advance in this direction, they next worked up towards Montbrehain, and, taking advantage of the cover afforded by the quarries south of that village, filtered into the south-west corner of the village, where they were lost to sight.
In view of this situation and of a report received at this time at Brigade Headquarters to the effect that the enemy was massing for a counter-attack north of Montbrehain, the G.O.C. 139th Brigade decided to withdraw his men from the village itself. Orders were therefore given for a line to be consolidated south of Montbrehain, utilizing the Beaurevoir-Montbrehain Railway from the Divisional boundary to 250 yards south of Ramicourt Station, and thence due south to the line already held by the 137th Brigade.
