This particular passage obliquely confirms the inferences we have made about the nature of this particular battle. First, the Lamanites must have had a superior force in terms of sheer numbers. Even after losing many men at the river ford, they still have an army sufficient to come close to overwhelming the Nephite army. Secondly, we have supposed that the militia formed the largest part of the army and the final defense line against Manti.
Further, the supposition is that the militia would not have been as well protected as the regular troops. These suppositions would appear confirmed in this verse where the Lamanites appear on the verge of prevailing in spite of the earlier loses. Also, the first part of the battle emphasized the defensive superiority of the armor. Here, we have little of that, with the exception of noting that the Lamanites were even able to overcome some of the armor (verse 44). Nevertheless, their success against the armor would take even more effort, and the greatest probability is that their ability to be near to victory would have been that this militia did not have the armor of the Moroni’s regular army.
The last thing that we see here is an aspect of the battle that Mormon does not tell us. We see Moroni on the side of the militia, rallying them to victory with the evocation of what they were truly fighting for. Moroni had led the troops the had chased the Lamanites north. We are not told how he moves from the south of the Lamanite lines to the north, but as a resident of the land, there were likely any number of ways that he could have arrived. He might not have brought his army with him because there were advantages to harassing the enemy from the rear. Nevertheless, there was also a great need to have his leadership among the militia that would not have had such a trained leader among them. Moroni turns this battle to victory not only because of his skill in planning, but through his personal leadership and inspiration.