Saturday, January 17, 2009

One of those troops who probably needs a prescription jockstrap

to hold his balls. Dayum.
Caught in a Taliban ambush of rockets and machine guns, "Donno" Donaldson had already deliberately put himself in the firing line to draw enemy fire away from the wounded.

But as he and his SAS mates instigated a fighting withdrawal, he realised a badly wounded Afghan interpreter had been left behind.

What he did next won him the Victoria Cross - the first awarded to an Australian for nearly 40 years.

Still recovering from wounds received in an earlier battle in Afghanistan, Trooper Donaldson turned around and dashed across open ground to collect the man and bring him home. It was the longest 80m of his life. Bullets flew around him and the dust kicked up with explosions, but the 29-year-old father said dying didn't even cross his mind.

"I didn't really have time to think about it," he said. "I was too busy worrying about getting back to my mates and getting us all through it."

After carrying the man on his back, he went back out into the field and continued fighting for the two hours it took for the convoy to escape
.

I say again, dayum.

No comments: