Meantime the South Africans had entered the fringes of the battle. On the night of 2nd July the Brigade moved forward to Billon Valley to relieve the 27th Brigade, which was advancing into the line. On 4th July General Furse ordered Lukin to relieve the 21st Brigade in divisional reserve, and the 89th Brigade in the Glatz sector of the front.[10] This relief was completed by 3.15 a.m. on the morning of 5th July. The position now was that the 1st and 4th South Africans held the line from the junction with the French to Briqueterie Trench east of Montauban, the 2nd South Africans were in divisional reserve at Talus Boise, and the 3rd South Africans were in support in the old British and German front-line trenches immediately to the north-west of Maricourt. The first experience of the South Africans in the battle was the difficult task of holding a piece of captured front in the face of heavy enemy shelling. The 27th Brigade had cleared Bernafay Wood on the night of the 4th, and during the following days the French (General Nourrisson’s 39th Division of the famous XX. Corps[11]) were assiduously attacking towards Maltzhorn Farm, while the British right division, the 30th, was labouring to secure the wood of Trônes. The South Africans were stationary except for the contingent which, as we shall see, assisted the 30th Division in Trônes Wood. Their position was uncomfortable, for they were close to the angle of our front, where it bent southward, and were thus exposed to sniping and gun-fire from both front and flank. On the 5th General Lukin began those faithful pilgrimages along the front-line trenches which from the first marked him out among brigade commanders. He was on his feet that day for no less than fifteen hours. Next day, the 6th, there was a great shelling, and the two South African regiments suffered some twenty casualties, among the killed being Lieutenant Oughterson at Glatz Redoubt, and Lieutenant W. N. Brown in Chimney Trench. On the 7th the shelling continued, and that afternoon, in pouring rain, the relief began of the 1st South Africans by the 18th Manchesters of the 21st Brigade. That evening came the preliminary orders from General Headquarters for the second stage of the battle, which for the 9th Division was an attack upon the German line at Longueval.