along the Fricourt–Pozières road, behind. A company of the reserve battalion of RIR 110 counter-attacked from Peake Woods throwing hand-grenades and German troops in Scots Redoubt and the third and fourth trenches behind the Scots, emerged from cover and engaged them with machine-gun fire. The German attack inflicted many casualties and forced the 15th Royal Scots back to Birch Tree Wood and Shelter Wood, driving back the 16th Royal Scots and parties from the second column to Round Wood. The Scots advanced to Wood Alley and Scots Redoubt, collecting stray parties and captured both positions. Some troops had advanced beyond the first objective and faced the Contalmaison Spur beyond and German accounts mention a party of the 16th Royal Scots, which got into Contalmaison before being annihilated. A battalion which had followed behind the Royal Scots was pinned down in no man's land by massed machine-gun fire but small groups managed to press on to the Fricourt–Pozières road and some parties, accompanied by a few stragglers, got to Acid Drop Copse and the fringe of Contalmaison. As news filtered back, Gore sent the 16th Royal Scots headquarters forward to take command and consolidate, creating a defensive flank for XV Corps. Prelude Preliminary operations British: 2–3 July General Dougas Haig, commander of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), had visited the Lieutenant-General Henry Rawlinson at the Fourth Army headquarters at on 2 July and said that ammunition, particularly its low quality, rather than a lack of replacements, limited British freedom of action. Haig wanted to exploit the success on the right flank by advancing from Mametz Wood and Contalmaison towards the German second position on the Longueval–Bazentin le Petit ridge. The XV Corps headquarters ordered an attack by the 17th (Northern) Division and the 21st Division after a thirty-minute bombardment, to capture Bottom Wood and Shelter Wood to cut out a German salient north of Mametz and Fricourt. At on 3 July, a battalion of the 51st Brigade, 17th (Northern) Division attacked and was engaged with machine-gun fire, taking until to reach Railway Alley, after reinforcement by another battalion and bombers from two more. A company of the 7th Border got into the west end of Bottom Wood and was isolated until the 21st Division captured Shelter Wood on the left and the German defence collapsed. The 7th Border pressed on and met parties from the 7th Division in the rest of