 In late 1941 , amidst concerns of war in the Pacific , the unit was deployed north to Darwin in the Northern Territory , where they undertook garrison duties in the weeks following Japan 's entry into the war . Following Japanese landings in Malaya , the 2 / 4th embarked from Darwin and were transferred to Malaya , arriving in Singapore in the final days of the fighting on the peninsula . In the wake of the withdrawal of British and Commonwealth forces to the island , the battalion was hastily deployed in support of the two Australian brigades — the 22nd and 27th Brigades — in the north @-@ western sector of the island . During the initial Japanese landing , elements of the battalion were heavily engaged around the landing beaches but they were outnumbered and over the course of the week the defenders were pushed back towards the centre of the island , towards the city of Singapore . They suffered heavy casualties during this time , before subsequently becoming prisoners of war after the fall of Singapore . 
