OC receives MC

Today we pay tribute to Old Cottesmorian Rowley Gregg who went to Buckingham Palace to receive a top bravery award for his courage and forthright leadership while serving in Afghanistan. Captain Rowley Gregg, of the Swanton Morley-based Light Dragoons, was presented with the Military Cross by the Princess Royal.

The prestigious medal is the third highest honour a soldier can receive for gallantry while on active operations against the enemy on land.

Rowley , 26, from Lammas, between Norwich and North Walsham, spent six months in Afghanistan last year, and he received the Military Cross for outstanding leadership during Operation Panther's Claw, a campaign to clear one of the few remaining Taliban strongholds in Helmand Province. He commanded a mixed troop of reconnaissance vehicles and dismounted soldiers attached to a rifle company.

Rowley described receiving his award as “pretty daunting” and “overwhelming.”

Afterwards he said: “I'm here on behalf of my boys and being given the Military Cross is as much for them as it is for me.

“We went through something and I was chuffed to be working alongside these guys.”

The citation for the award said Rowley “insisted on leading from the front; resolute and firm in his determination to take the fight to the enemy at all costs.

“His courage, forthright leadership and determination to complete the mission in the face of heavy casualties were pivotal to the success of the operation.

“His bravery, leadership and the outstanding personal example he set have all been exemplary.”

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