Page 25 - RAPTC Year of 2019

HEADQUARTERS NORTH WEST
RAPTCIS DAY OUT!!
WO2 (QMSI) A Halliday MBE
Another year past in HQ NW Preston. Mostly normal routine between HQ NW engagement events, UK North Sport and Regional Command business and, of course, Army Football Referee courses and training and mentoring, all which keeps me on the road for most of the week with my laptop. Wouldn’t have it any other way!
The great thing about my position is I get to watch our RAPTCIs put on some great sporting events to encourage service personnel to reach their sporting potential in whichever way they feel. The recent Winter Festival of Sport held in Catterick Garrison was a fantastic example of getting individuals out of the office and partake in regional sport, meeting old and new friends. It even gave the chance for the oldies (and me!!) a chance to show that we can
still hold our own against the young pups! I couldn’t find enough members of HQ NW who was free to take part, so I amalgamated on to a HQ 4 Bde/1 UK Div consortium which we conjured up to take part in the Watt Bike and Indoor Rowing events. The team comprised of 4 Bde Commander, Maj (MAA) Lou James MBE, Capt (MAA), WO2 (QMSI) Tracey Hetherington, WO2 Mick Wright RLC and myself with a combined age of around 280ish (give or take the odd wrinkle or two!!)
WO2 Mick Wright RLC, Maj (MAA) Lou James MBE RAPTC, Me and WO2 (QMSI) Tracey Hetherington RAPTC
Capt (MAA) Scott Prior RAPTC at the back and 4 Bde Commander, Brig in the foreground I am offering Capt Prior some words of encouragement and advice! Just what he needed at this point!!
HEADQUARTERS SOUTH WEST PD BRANCH
Capt (MAA) S Green RAPTC SO3 PD
The purpose of life is to contribute in some way to making things better.”– Robert F. Kennedy
By the time this has gone to print I would have spent half my time in the role of SO3 Physical Development for the South West and it’s incredible how fast time passes, it
feels like only yesterday that I stepped into the shoes left by Jase Murdoch and having never worked in a Brigade before an uphill learning curve was definitely on the horizon. My first job was to understand the intricacies of Brigade life and so far, it hasn’t failed to impress me, the diversity of the job is what makes it so enjoyable.
Having arrived just as the ink was drying on the PXR for OP MORLOCK (Poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal in Salisbury) I was keen to understand the finer details of the auditing process and how I could improve the delivery output of the RAPTCIs, so the M4 has become my playing field, as weekly I am up and down visiting units and chatting to the hugely talented collection of RAPTCIs in the SW, this is without doubt the most enjoyable element of the job. At times I feel that we underestimate how good we are in the Corps, however thankfully the remainder of the Army doesn’t, as nearly all 2ICs and COs are hugely complimentary of the work that the RAPTCIs carry out – which as playing the role of DAD is a proud feeling.
Although the role is primarily G7 PD there are times that we need to exchange pleasantries with the other “Gs” and I must admit all conversations are worthwhile because I take a little bit of extra knowledge away each time. It would be strange to not mention the extraordinary circumstances that we found ourselves in regarding the “COVID 19” pandemic that entered our shores and as we go to print no one really knew what that was going to entail, however as we read this hopefully it was a storm in a tea cup and we are all back at work looking forward to the Summer.
Being a proud Cornishman being assigned to the South West was a joy, however I was unaware how big the Army geographical bubble stretched especially as nearly a third of the British Army resides in the SW and nearly a quarter in Wiltshire alone, so if the Army did a version of
“Air miles” I’d definitely be on to a winner...
In closing I must say a huge thank you to as he now “Mr Scott Burrell” as without his guidance and incredible knowledge the transition to SO3 PD wouldn’t have been as smooth. I know that he will be sorely missed by every single RAPTCI in the SW as his direction, guidance, experience and knowledge has been welcomed by all the SW guys and girls. The Army’s loss is Service Sports gain. Scott thank you and the very best of luck in your new role, I know you will make it work.
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