An attack from the east face of Redoubt was met by machine-gun fire but a party of about fifty men reached an artillery position in a fold known as (Boom Ravine), in front of the Grandcourt Line. Other groups got into the line further south, where it was unoccupied. By the breakthrough on the 26th Reserve Division front had made Thiepval vulnerable to an attack from the redoubt, which would make the village untenable. Soden ordered General Auwäter, commander of Reserve Infantry Brigade 52, to recapture the redoubt and sent a battalion of Bavarian Reserve Infantry Regiment 8 (BRIR 8) as reinforcements. Auwäter ordered the counter-attack to begin immediately by three groups, from the north-east, east and south-east, to forestall a wheeling movement against Thiepval and Ovillers. Delays caused to message runners by the British bombardment, held back the counter-attack until 4 Squadron RFC observed the attack of the 36th (Ulster) Division beyond the German front line, where it was out of view from the British lines. At a 4 Squadron observer reported that German artillery from Grandcourt to Courcelette, was moving to the rear and at that there was no sign of German troops massing against the redoubt. After an hour, the 36th (Ulster) Division was reported to still hold The Crucifix, to the south-east of the redoubt.