Fox & The Rat: Day 4 Battle 3 - Breakthrough!

Location - Front line Western Desert, west of Benghazi, Libya

It all hung in the balance…..Overnight Lieutenant Harbhajan Singh’s hard-pressed Indians had been reinforced by two sections of raw New Zealanders.  He couldn’t be certain but he thought Jerry had been stiffened by some DAK reinforcements on the British right.

Singh was determined he would not let this chance slip by.  He cursed his timidity the previous day and resolved to be bold, channelling his inner Frederick The Great (he afforded himself a wry smile at the irony).

The Honey continued to pour fire into the central building where the MG42 was skulking away and causing issues for the Sikh infantry on the left.  It felt like Sgt Odeball was at last starting to have an impact.  However the rifle team of section 2 in the centre of the Sikh line finally succumbed to unending concentrated fire from their right and broke.

The Indian MMG team packed up back in the jeep which raced round the right of the DAK line and looked to set up on a sand dune overlooking the rear of Fritz’s left flank - this was the speed which Lieutenant Singh had been craving.  Section 1 of the Kiwis now took the initiative - in the clapped out old Bedford truck they raced from the jump off point on the right of the minefield following the course of the Honey and then went straight past Sgt Odeball to alight behind a fuel dump overlooking the rear of the central building - this should give the Hun something to think about rather than pinning the Sikhs in front.

Lieutenant Singh had been right.  Fritz had been reinforced.  A fresh section moved up on the DAK left occupying the right hand building facing the British and another team working their way past the smoking wreck of the Sdkfz222 looking to take up a position in the scrub ahead of that same building and threatening the flank of what remained of the LMG team of the Indians’ section 2 and the support command team,  Section 2 of the Kiwis, led by the fiery Corporal McDougall, pushed forward on the British right to put pressure on those Fritz’s in the scrub ahead of them.

Meanwhile Sgt Odeball finally obliterated the MG42 in the central building.  Not before time.  The Kiwi rifle team from section 1 now rushed the building from behind the fuel dump.  The LMG team however had come under heavy fire from the DAK and were unable to support,

The Honey now turned the turret to unleash hell against these same DAK who’d targeted the Kiwis.  They were supported by the MMG on the sand dune in their rear and the Hun LMG team broke.  The Hun in front of the central building could now hear and then feel the relentless crackle of Lee Enfields from the rear as the Kiwi rifle section in the central building poured withering fire into them.  This was too much.  They soon joined their dastardly compatriots and broke and fled.  The tide was turning distinctly in favour of the British.

Corporal McDougall now made sure.  The rifle team had been pinned by the DAK from the building on the left of the German line but with the LMG team he rushed the unsuspecting Jerries cowering in the scrub and drove them off - Don’t stop until you get to Stettin.  Tschussy tschuss Fritz!   

The Kiwis - despite their rawness - had shown some tactical acumen and flair to resurrect the floundering Indian advance and push the Brits over the line.  Lieutenant Singh was mightily relieved.