So there was a chance that the Hungarians and Poles would win on numbers, but the sticking point was for Dembiński to close up gather the Hungarian forces. But he did not. On 26 February, at 10 a.m., the Austrian army started to move from Gyöngyös to Tarna, where they met with the Hungarian army. The first Hungarian legion, under the command of Arisztid Dessewffy, remained at Verpelét. A small commando from this legion were at Sirok. The arriving Austrian army realised that the Hungarian army was much stronger than they, and after a short fight the Austrian army started to move towards Feldebrő. Ernő Poeltenberg () and his Seventh Legion marched into Feldebrő around noon, and at 2 p.m. Poeltenberg moved his legion and crossed the River Tarna. First they fought with Major General Colloredo at the forest of Aldebrő. At first neither of the armies could get a decisive victory, but Colloredo got more and more reinforcements, and Poeltenberg had to retreat. Poeltenberg got no news from his messenger, who he had sent to Káplona, so he crossed the Tarna in the middle of Austrian fire. He demolished the bridges on the Tarna, emptied Aldebrő (Lower Debrő) and Feldebrő (Upper Debrő) and retreated in the direction of Kerecsend. The Austrian army occupied the forest but they did not cross the Tarna, or occupy Aldebrő or Feldebrő. In the meantime Dembiński arrived and gave an order to Poeltenberg to go back to the two villages. The next morning Poeltenberg was stationed at Aldebrő and Feldebrő. Colonel János Máriássy’s Driquet brigade, part of the First Hungarian Division, crossed the Tarna at the beginning of the battle and was stationed between the Kompolt Forest and the Kápolna vineyard. There was a legion available for Máriássy, and with it he tried a covert attack to the rear of Franz Wyss, but it was discovered and repelled. But Máriássy's cavalrymen still managed to blockade the Austrian army. The Hungarian army retreated in the direction of Tarna.