Series of snapshots showing the accretion process as a function of the binary's orbital phase, with time T in units of the binary period T_b. The binary is at pericentre in the uppermost left panel (the same snapshot as in Fig. 1), and at apocentre in the panel third from left in the middle row. The primary (larger circle) can be seen to drag disc material in from the nearest cavity edge at apocentre passage, which is then thrown across the cavity due to the binary's eccentric orbit. This stream is then partially dragged back towards the binary by the secondary when it next reaches apocentre, and this material is accreted by the binary components near pericentre. As the cavity precesses with respect to the binary orbit, which binary component plays the role of creating the accretion stream and which drags it back to the binary will switch.