[Hanno Spoelstra]

Wikipedia has distilled an article from reputable sources on the Westminster Dragoons during Operation Constellation to capture Overloon and Venray. It mentions "Lt Hall's tank engaged an enemy Panther tank".

Again, no exact details no exact details on the Sherman Crabs, but it is clear the flail tanks were in the thick of the heavy fighting.

Operation Constellation

For example, during Operation Constellation to capture Overloon and Venray, the Crabs of A and C Sqns deployed with the AVREs 617 Assault Sqn, RE, to support 3rd British Division and 6th Guards Tank Brigade. At noon on 12 October 4th (Tank) Bn Coldstream Guards advanced to Overloon, where it encountered a minefield and A Sqn was ordered up to flail a path. One Crab (Lt Sutton) was disabled by a mine, and Sjt Harmston flailed a diversion round the wreck; other Crabs flailed two other lanes, and the Guards' Churchills advanced to take the town. Next day the Crabs continued flailing in front of the Coldstreamers, without finding any mines, but Lt Hall's tank engaged an enemy Panther tank. On 14 October the Crabs flailed a path where RE mine-lifting parties had previously come under fire, but the advance was halted by a Tiger I that 'brewed up' seven Coldstream Churchills before starting on Lt Cooper's partly Hull-down Crab, which was subjected to a hail of fire. Inexplicably, the Tiger withdrew before destroying the Crab. 15 October was spent on maintenance, then on 16 October the squadron advanced again, in pouring rain, mud and a flooded brook (the Molen Beek). Although four crossings were attempted on 3rd Division's front, only Lance-Sjt Carter was successful, his Crab covered by smoke fired by the rest of his troop. The Churchills followed over what for the next 24 hours was the only crossing. On 17 October the Crabs were at work again, losing two to mines, and rapidly wearing out their flail chains when repeatedly requested to flail along roads. (6th Guards Tank Bde noted that the concentrations of minefields in Operation Constellation were the heaviest they had yet encountered, including a new mine powerful enough to disable their heavy Churchill tanks.) By 18 October the squadron was down to five serviceable tanks, but Cooper and Carter pushed on into Venray, flailing the town's main street and piles of rubble ahead of the Guards' Churchills.[63][64]

Meanwhile, C Sqn had been operating with 4th (Tank) Bn Grenadier Guards since 12 October. Fifteen minutes before H-hour a minefield was discovered just short of the start line, and the Crabs had to deal with this despite badly broken ground. That attack went in successfully. Next day Lt Pear's 3 Trp had to flail a 1,000 yards (910 m) path followed by another of 700 yards (640 m) so the Grenadiers could reach their objective, followed by another of almost 1 mile (1.6 km) in the afternoon. On 16 October the squadron got badly bogged in full view of the enemy while trying to cross the Molen Beek and the attempt had to be abandoned. Next day a composite troop, comprising the fittest tanks and least tired crews was sent to help 29th Armoured Brigade, losing some tanks but carrying on and engaging anti-tank guns and capturing prisoners. The rest of C Sqn (three Crabs under Capt Bell, Lt Pear and Sjt Birch) helped 1st Bn Herefordshire Regiment in an attack north-east of Deurne on 17 October, under heavy fire. On 20 October A and C Sqns were pulled out to rejoin the regiment, receiving many compliments for their work.[65]

B Squadron had been operating miles away with 7th Armoured Division and 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division against 's-Hertogenbosch. 1 Troop operated so closely with A Sqn 1st Royal Tank Regiment that it was dubbed '5th Trp, A Sqn'.[66] Small actions continued through early November. Lieutenant Michael Sutton won an MC on 2 November when he was supporting 23rd Hussars with two flails. A Hussars tanks was blown up on a mine, but the heavy fire prevented the crew from bailing out or sappers from clearing a path to it. Sutton flailed a path up to and round the disabled tank, then carried on flailing the road until an anti-tank gun disabled two Hussars' tanks and shot off his flail gear. Ordered to withdraw he had to do so slowly in reverse. While doing so he spotted a wounded man in a ditch: calling for smoke he got out of his tank and ran 20 yards (18 m) to bring the wounded man back to the tank, where another crew member dismounted to help get him aboard, all under heavy machine gun fire. Lieutenant Brian Pear was killed the following day while supporting 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division in an attack on Meijel: when Sjt Birch's Crab was hit and the crew unable to bale out he placed his tank between them and the enemy. Both Crabs were destroyed by anti-tank fire and only one man survived to be taken prisoner. The volume of fire was so great that 15th (Scottish) postponed all operations for 48 hours. C Squadron then flailed a path for 6th Guards Tank Bde, though 23 Churchills and one Crab were lost in an hour.[67][68]

Sources:
Richard Doherty, Hobart's 79th Armoured Division at War: Invention, Innovation and Inspiration, Barnsley: Pen & Sword, 2011.
Lt-Gen H.G. Martin, The History of the Fifteenth Scottish Division 1939–1945, Edinburgh: Blackwood, 1948/Uckfield: Naval & Military Press, 2014