1,500 applications were received including from retired officers who wished to serve in the ranks. Such was the spirit of adventure that many men wished to serve as private soldiers alongside their comrades, rather than as officers. Amongst the recruits were enough former international players for the battalion to field two rugby union and one football team. This became the 16th (Service) Battalion of the Middlesex Regiment (Duke of Cambridge's Own), but was often referred to by its members as the 'PSB'. The volunteers were summoned to Waterloo Station on 15 September and boarded a special train for Kempton Park Racecourse where they were to go into camp and begin their training. Such was the success of the original recruitment drive that four further Public Schools battalions were raised by the Public Schools and University Men's Force of 66 Victoria Street, London, beginning on 11 September. These gathered at Epsom Downs Racecourse and were the battalions that joined the Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment). 16th (Service) Battalion, Middlesex Regiment (Public Schools) Training The battalion was initially issued with blue uniforms and old Long Lee-Enfield rifles due to the shortages of khaki and modern Short Magazine Lee-Enfields (SMLE Mk III). However, a number of the recruits were already familiar with the older rifle from service in their school Cadet Corps. A Regular officer, Lt-Col J. Hamilton Hall, took over command. In January 1915 the battalion was marched to a hutted camp at Woldingham, Surrey, with kit being moved by private cars and hired removal vans. By the end of 1914 the battalion had provided 360 candidates for officer training, many of them replaced by volunteers arriving from different parts of the British Empire. Unfit men were weeded out and posted to the reserve companies, E and F under Maj Mackay (later 24th (Reserve) Battalion see below). On 10 December 1914 the 16th Middlesex was assigned to 119th Brigade in 40th Division, but the War Office (WO) then decided to convert the K4 battalions into reserve battalions to train reinforcements for the earlier K1–K3 units. So on 27 April 1915 the K5 divisions were renumbered to take up the designations of the K4 formations. The short-lived 40th Division thus became 33rd Division, and 16th Middlesex was in 100th Brigade. On 1 July 1915 the battalions were formally taken over by the WO and on 9 July the 16th Middlesex moved to