The German attack that had been expected started at 8:30am on 12 April 1941. The Germans attacked east of the road. It was at the place where the Rangers position and the Australian 2/8th Battalion joined. The Germans made no attempt to disperse, and rather, stayed in a close "formation". The Australians were so used to always being dispersed to reduce the casualties from any air attacks, that they were surprised by the German formation. The Germans overran the front Australian platoon. The platoon had six men escape capture. The rest of the company held, but then they observed the Rangers "in the valley" start to withdraw. The Australian historian speculated that the Rangers had thought that the2/8th Battalion had been overrun. After that, "the remaining platoons moved farther up the slopes".
There was a lot of German activity "with tanks, trucks, and guns" below the 2/8th Battalion. The Germans held back for several more hours. The two 2/8th companies were not attacked and were able to shoot at the Germans. Australians "counter-attacked and retook some ground. So the 2/8th was able to hold their positions, but the Rangers were seen to be gathering some two miles back. One issue was that five anti-tank guns had been left unprotected and were ultimately abandoned. The Australian positions on the ridge were now a "salient".
The 2nd RHA guns now did not have any infantry in front of them. At 3pm, the reality was that the Rangers were far to the rear, not close by. This is based on the account in "Greece Crete and Syria" by Gavin Long.
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