About 8 km (5.0 mi) south of Caen, Verrières Ridge blocked a direct advance by Allied forces on Falaise.

Phase II, to begin at H+2½ hours, required the divisions to press on and capture Fontenay-le-Marmion, Rocquancourt and Carciers-Sequeville.

Late on 19 July, a counter-attack against the gains made during Goodwood was delayed until the 116th Panzer Division had arrived, which had been ordered to move by road regardless of loss.

Within the next hour, Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Petch began to move reinforcements into the village to assist with "mopping up" the last German defenders.

To their west, The Royal Hamilton Light Infantry, encountered determined initial opposition, managed to secure Verrières village by 05:30.

On July 25, the Calgary Highlanders attacked May-sur-Orne and Bourguebus Ridge but found that the assembly area of St Martin was still occupied by German troops.

The tank and artillery support did not materialise and the infantry were four hours late reaching their assembly area of St Martin.

For several days German troops, mainly the 9th and 12th SS Panzer divisions, continued to chip away at Canadian positions gained in Operation Spring.

The Calgary Highlanders eventually withdrew from May-sur-Orne and the North Nova Scotia Regiment were forced to retreat from Tilly-la-Campagne.

Over the next two days, the RHLI fought "fanatically" to defend the ridge, defeating dozens of counter-attacks from well-placed anti-tank gun and machine-gun positions.

On 26 July, German commanders declared "If you cross the ridge, you are a dead man" to soldiers being deployed on the southern slope of Verrières.

[11] The Official History of the Canadian Army, refers to Spring as a "holding attack" in that it was launched with offensive objectives but also firmly with the intent to delay the redeployment of German forces westward.

"Spring" was merely the last and not the least costly incident of the long "holding attack" which the British and Canadian forces had conducted, in accordance with Montgomery's plan, to create the opportunity for a decisive blow on the opposite flank of the bridgehead.