Glorious sunshine, a huge crowd and a strong contingent of service and ex-service people were the hallmarks of the 2016 Ballarat Anzac Day march, which commenced at the George Hotel in Lydiard Street at 10.30am.
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Ably corralled and controlled by parade marshal Alan Douglass, complete with swagger stick and a rigid backbone, the parade was led off by a large cohort of Vietnam War veterans to the tune of the ‘Colonel Bogey March’ provided by the St Patrick’s College Band, swinging to right up Sturt Street to march towards the Cenotaph.
It is 50 years since the Battle of Long Tan took place in Vietnam, where D Company of the 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment took on and defeated a much larger North Vietnamese force in a rubber plantation in Phuoc Tuy Province. A brutal battle fought in appalling conditions, D Company suffered 42 casualties out of a total number of 108 men. Eighteen were killed. The North Vietnamese forces suffered 600 casualties.
Alan Murphy served in Vietnam twice, in 1965 and 1971, serving with the Armoured Corps in the 4th/19th Prince of Wales Light Horse Unit and the 3 Cavalry Regiment as a crew commander.
“Our role was reconnaissance, search-and-destroy, escorts, retrieving bodies – lots of things. I joined the army when I was 17 and spent my 21st birthday on HMAS Sydney just off Vietnam.”
Although Alan has been in Ballarat for just 18 months, he was heartened to see the large number of Vietnam veterans in the march today.
“We march wherever we are. If we’re travelling, we’ll just fall in. There’s always a place or somebody you know. That’s the good thing about it, it’s one big family.”
Roy Hicks is another Vietnam veteran marching in Ballarat. He served in Phuoc Tuy in 1969 and 1970 after being conscripted. His memories of the conflict are strong and immediate.
“It was something you just cannot forget. It wasn’t much chop at all, I’m afraid,” said Mr Hicks.
Like Alan Murphy, Roy Hicks is encouraged by the numbers of veterans marching.
“But this parade, the last three years, it’s picked up that much, me and my mate come to this parade. It’s an excellent turnout today.”
Ken Gittins was a National Serviceman in the Royal Australian Navy, coming on board in 1956.
“I did get a trip to Fiji on the aircraft carrier HMAS Sydney. That ship is now razor blades. For me the best part of my service was that trip. They didn’t give us that much time off though. And I did get seasick. But I made some very good mates.”
The march concluded at the Cenotaph with the traditional wreath-laying and playing of the Last Post. .
