2 / 10th Battalion ( Australia ) The 2 / 10th Battalion ( The Adelaide Rifles ) was a battalion of the Australian Army was raised at Wayville Showgrounds , Adelaide , on 13 October 1939 , as part of the 18th Brigade of the 6th Australian Division for World War II . The Battalion was the first South Australian battalion formed for the Second AIF and was commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Verrier . History . Training . Training was undertaken at Woodside in the Adelaide hills , then at Greta and Ingleburn in New South Wales . The 2 / 10th embarked for the Middle East on 5 May 1940 . United Kingdom . En route to the Middle East , the 18th Brigade was diverted to the United Kingdom to bolster the defences following the fall of France and became part of the 9th Australian Division . The 2 / 10th disembarked at Gourock , Scotland on 18 June 1940 and was based at Lopcombe Corner , England . The Second AIF ’ s first casualty due to enemy action occurred on 8 July 1940 , when Private Albert Webb was wounded in a strafing attack by a German aircraft . The battalion was relocated to Colchester in October 1940 and left the United Kingdom on 17 November 1940 . Middle East . The battalion arrived in Egypt on 31 December 1940 . In February 1941 , the 2 / 10th was transferred to the 7th Australian Division . D Company of the 2 / 10th joined the 2 / 9th Australian Infantry Battalion for its attack on Giarabub on 21 March 1941 . The battalion was not committed to active operations until it moved to Tobruk in early April 1941 . The 2 / 10th took part in the defence of Tobruk until it was withdrawn at the end of August 1941 . After leaving Tobruk , the 2 / 10th trained in Palestine and between late September 1941 and early January 1942 formed part of the garrison force in Syria . The 2 / 10th sailed for Australia on 11 February 1942 , arriving in Adelaide on 29 March 1942 . Pacific . The 2 / 10th arrived at Milne Bay , Papua on 12 August 1942 and during the Battle of Milne Bay on the night of 27 August 1942 was overwhelmed by Imperial Japanese marines and suffered significant casualties . After regrouping and reinforcement the battalion participated in the Battle of Buna - Gona attacking Buna between 23 December 1942 and 2 January 1943 , the 2 / 10th lost 113 men killed and 205 wounded . The 2 / 10th then participated in the attack against Sanananda between 9 – 24 January 1943 . The battalion returned home to Australia on 12 March 1943 . The 2 / 10th returned to Papua in early August 1943 , training around Port Moresby until deployed to the Finisterre Mountains in New Guinea on 31 December 1943 , where it participated in Battle for Shaggy Ridge between 4 January - 1 February 1944 . The battalion returned to Australia on 8 May 1944 and the 2 / 10th spent a year training . On 1 July 1945 , the battalion landed at Balikpapan , Borneo and stormed the heights of Parramatta Ridge and clearing the Japanese from in and around Balikpapan town , and was withdrawn into reserve on 6 July 1945 . With the end of World War II , the personnel from 2 / 10th progressively returned to Australia and discharged , with only a cadre of only 42 personnel remaining . The battalion disbanded at Balikpapan on 29 December 1945 .