When the Australians reached the Ottoman trenches they found them roofed with pine logs with no easy entrance, which had not been identified by aerial reconnaissance during the planning stages. As the Ottoman defenders recovered from the artillery barrage, they began firing at the Australians through specially cut holes at point blank range. As the second and third waves of the attack came up, some of the Australians fired, grenaded and bayoneted from above, while some found their way inside through gaps or by lifting the logs, which were in places as thick as 4 inches (10 cm) by 9 inches (23 cm). Others ran on past to the open communications and support trenches behind, where they were able to gain access to the trenches; about 70 Ottoman troops were captured as they attempted to escape and ran into the Australians entering the trenches. Small groups of Australians managed to push through to The Cup where they were stopped by Ottoman troops who were hastily assembled to defend their regimental headquarters. In the ensuing fighting there, almost all of the Australians were killed, while a handful were taken prisoner.
In the Ottoman trenches, the darkness and cramped conditions led to considerable confusion amongst the attackers. Due to concerns of shooting their comrades, the Australians were unable to fire their rifles initially, and the fighting devolved into a melee as the soldiers attacked each other with bayonets and grenades. The first Australians to enter the position were picked off by the defenders, but as the Australians established themselves in strength, they were able to break into the position before the defenders that had been sheltering in the tunnels behind the front line were able to fully respond. Over the space of half an hour the Australians took control of the position and, after ejecting the remaining Ottomans from the main trench, they established a number of defensive positions along the line. These amounted to positions in the communication trenches on the flanks of the captured ground and about seven or eight posts in the centre that were "isolated" but connected by hastily dug saps. For the Australians, the attack had been successful, as they had gained possession of the main Ottoman line, and after being halted at The Cup they began preparing to defend their gains. Hastily erecting sandbag barriers along the parapet, they settled down to wait for the first counterattack. As they did so, the brigade reserve—the 1st Battalion—was brought up. Due to crowding in the tunnels that had been used for the attack, the reinforcements were sent via the open ground that had been in front of the old Ottoman positions; despite being behind the recently captured position, the ground was still subjected to heavy Ottoman artillery and machine-gun fire, which was being poured down from positions in overwatch on the flanks.
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