Lieutenant Colonel J.A. Hopwood's battalion, the 1st Black Watch, sets off early on Monday 30 October. The previous night in the hamlet of Zandschel was particularly unsettling, as the Scots were shelled from all sides by retreating German troops. Their objective for the day is Waspik Boven, the part of Waspik south of the railway line. Initially the advance is very smooth. The Germans seem to have disappeared and by 09.40 the forward unit, B Company has advanced as far as the road junction. On the right the road enters the village, on the left it runs to the Hooge Brug (bridge) over the ‘s Gravenmoerse Vaart. This has been partially destroyed upon the approach of the Black Watch. But it will still have to be captured. Then all hell breaks loose.

Well-positioned German soldiers open fire and a fierce battle erupts in Waspik Boven. It is clear that the opposition is too great for one company and soon the other three also move forward and the whole battalion is engaged in battle. Guns fire, machine guns crackle and mortar shells explode. Eventually every single house must be taken and it is not until 2 pm that Waspik Boven is in Scottish hands. A total of twenty Highlanders have become casualties. It is now up to the next battalion to take the rest of Waspik.

At the Hooge Brug the fight is equally fierce. And there are displays of heroism, one of which results in an award. Corporal Leslie Pretlove is nominated by Hopwood for the Military Medal, the highest award for Other Ranks. The platoon in which Pretlove serves (37 men) is ordered to capture the bridge. While attacking across open terrain, the commanding officer is badly wounded. As bullets whistle around his ears, Pretlove makes sure the officer is brought to safety. After this, he and his section (seven men) capture the bridge under sustained German fire. Pretlove does not allow himself to be distracted by German fire. For this achievement he receives the decoration. It was awarded in 1945 by Field Marshal Montgomery himself.