Page 72 - MERCIAN Eagle 2011

Stoke Platoon by 2Lt Deepe Rawji
The highlight of the year must undoubtedly be the Company’s success in the Battalion shooting team. The team won pretty much everything at
the Brigade Skill at Arms Meeting in June, and went on to great success
at Bisley, led by 2Lt Rawji and ably supported by Sgt Scott in a G4 / G7 role. The Battalion team proved to be
a dedicated bunch, and completed
an intensive regime of training prior
to the competition, driven on by the team manager Maj Walkley. At Bisley the team was placed a very credible
5th out of 21 teams, with six members of the team getting into the TA Top 50 (up from just two last year). The G4 aspect was extremely well managed by CSgt Griffiths and his team, and special thanks must go to Sgt Scott for his efforts in assisting as non-firing team captain, and also reining in 2Lt Rawji’s ‘natural enthusiasm’!
of FIBUA and FIWAF training. It has taken the company several months to build up to these specific operating environments and the company has delivered a successful training package which was enjoyed by all. It has not only helped the company
dip in the freezing Irish Sea. Joys! After a liquid lunch the activities became more frantic with speedboating, which entailed three individuals holding onto an inflatable disc whilst being dragged across the Irish sea at a ludicrous
We have had to manage without some key members of the company during this period, as Cpl Birks, Cpl Minor, L/Cpl Barks and Pte ‘Grandad’ Davies all deployed to Afghanistan. Some have seen more action than others, but will no doubt make up
for it when they
return to the streets
of Tunstall. Pte
El’molla also
deployed to Cyprus
with UNFICYP as
a driver and team
member / medic.
Her deployment
tested the company
G4 chain considerably, as she fired off weekly requests to Sgt Scott for items of kit that she had forgotten.
While we have had some men cut away from their cosy towns into war torn Afghanistan, we have kept up the tempo at home with action packed weekends which have involved a lot
new faces that
have not previously
worked together.
One of the key
focuses has been
the regeneration
of the company, especially when key figures have left for Afghanistan. There has been a recruiting surge recently, and the platoon has seen the benefit from the section of new men that have joined the company out of the recent Midlands Challenge. Key players have been Pte Matthews who has taken on an ADC recruiter role and has been heavily involved with the administration behind the recruitment process. Without such key players in the administration sphere there would be no scope for the
of knots! The day finished with a BBQ on the beach and
‘several’ beers in the village for the duration of the night. After a few pints and the exchange of clothing items,
the company fared well on the dance floor and enjoyed capturing the hearts and minds of the local villagers with amazing sharp moves. Overall, D Company has fought to keep the pace with a few missing members and have done so with ruthless determination. Nothing has disrupted the unit cohesion and it keeps getting stronger with new additions to the company. We have managed to fight through and exploit
all opportunities to ensure we make the most of any situation. With the return of the Herrick veterans there is confidence that the company will reach new heights, and will be collectively more experienced and better prepared for the next period of mobilisation.
learn something new, but has improved unit cohesion as there are a lot of
Let us just say that everyone had feared for their own lives at some stage of the activity
speed. Let us just say that everyone had feared for their own lives at some stage of the activity. Meanwhile the OC had got caught up in hours of windsurfing, tackling the waves at a brilliant rate
...windsurfing, kayaking, sea-swimming and drinking! An extreme sport, yes!
company to keep processing raw recruits. Another highlight of the year was the adventure training weekend, which was a
joint effort with B Company. The company travelled Wales to have a
to Anglesey, North
crack at windsurfing, kayaking, sea- swimming, and drinking! An extreme sport, yes! The atmosphere was tremendous, even if the weather was a little slow to warm up. It all started off on the beach of Rhosnigr, with beach football, beach rounders and a quick
70
OC
2IC CSM PSAO
Pl Comd Pl Comd
Maj Nick Clarke
Capt Rich Oakes
WO2 Stephen Burgess Capt John Tyson
2Lt Deepe Rawji
2Lt Matt Styles
D Company
By Capt Rich Oakes
D Company is a three-platoon rifle company, and is centered on the cities of Crewe and Stoke-on-Trent. The majority of soldiers and recruits come from Cheshire and North Staffordshire. However, loyal members of D Company continue to attend despite having moved to such exotic places as Bradford and Birmingham.
In what has been another busy year for D Company, we have mobilized a number of personnel for operations in Afghanistan and Cyprus, dominated the Battalion shooting
scene once again, and also experienced a considerable changeover of personalities. We welcome new permanent staff - SPSI WO2 “Waggy” Walker (2 MERCIAN) and PSI Sgt Craig Scott (3 MERCIAN) have taken over from WO2 Ben Cox and CSgt Steve Johnson respectively. Major Paul Walkley was dragged kicking and screaming into BHQ to take over as Battalion 2IC, with Captain Rich Oakes stepping up from Company 2IC into the OC role. WO2 Steve Burgess (formerly B Company SPSI) has
taken over from WO2 Rodgers as CSM, and 2Lt Deepe Rawji and 2Lt Matt Styles (two former soldiers from the company) have passed the TA Commissioning Course and join D Company as fledgling platoon commanders.
THE MERCIAN EAGLE