Midland reserves take first steps in new British Army

Members of the Reserve - formerly the Territorial Army - went into action as a combined company with regular troops for the first time and comrades deployed on an inaugural joint operation.

The 2nd Battalion the Mercian Regiment (2Mercian) and the Army Reserve 4th Battalion (4Mercian) will serve shoulder to shoulder in future operations throughout the world, prompting a string of joint operations, the first of which has just seen a joint company of 275 troops - 62 from 4Mercian and the remainder from 2Mercian - deployed to Cyprus on a six-month United Nations peacekeeping mission. They will patrol the Buffer Zone known as the 'Green Line' separating Greek and Turkish Forces who have been at a stalemate since 1974.

Lieutenant Colonel Paul Gilby, 2Mercian Commanding Officer said: "Peace-keeping duties require very different skills to those some of the soldiers have already put to use in tours of combat zones, such as Afghanistan.The soldiers will patrol by vehicle, foot or by mountain bike depending on the nature and type of patrol. When on patrol they will be talking to the local people of the island and helping to ensure that the UN mandate is maintained."

The two battalions will also be involved in an increasing number of joint manoeuvres, the first of which involved two weeks of tactical warfare training on the Brecon Beacons during which 110 troops from 4Mercian and 68 from 2Mercian lived rough, coping with the effects of sleep deprivation during platoon and section attacks, cleared buildings and were involved in the life firing of mortars.

A key feature of Ministry of Defence plans to cut 20,000 troops from the regular army while boosting the Reserve from 19,000 to 30,000 by 2020 is Reserve units being officially linked to regular army outfits - hence the joining of 2 and 4Mercian.

Cpt Tom Onion, 27-year-old second in command of A Company 2Mercian who took part in the tactical warfare training, said: "The aim is that a fully trained platoon of up to 36 4Mercian troops will be with every 120-strong rifle company of ours by 2020 but we like to be ahead of the curve and want to implement the plan as quickly as possible

"They cannot reach the same standards at the moment. There is no shame in that.

"We spend three months on an aspect of training that they can only devote two weeks to. But there was a massive growth in their capability as a result of this two week exercise.

"They covered a lot of ground and leant a lot of basic soldiering. We gelled really well and will come out of this a stronger battalion. This is meant to be completed by 2020 but we like to be ahead of the curve and want to implement the plan as quickly as possible. Two years ago when I went on operations in Afghanistan it was easy to see who was the reservist. Now it is increasingly difficult to tell."

Pt Tom Marriott, an 18-year-old former pupil at Hall Green High, Wednesbury from Pleck, Walsall who has been in the army for two years and also serves with 2Mercian, declared: "4Mercian are a good bunch of lads on a steep learning curve but we all appreciate that. They have got to be given a a bit of slack at the start."

Pt Dean Jordan, 19, of Oxley, Wolverhampton went to Moseley Park School.

He was part of the advanced party that moved to 2Mercian to prepare for the migration of comrades to the battalion after 3Mercian ceased to exist in September.

Pte Jordan said after the inaugural exercise with 4Mercian: "We learn from the Reserves and they learn from us. When I first heard of the plan for us all to work together I did not think it would happen but I have changed my mind after the exercise. At the end of the day we are all Mercians, after all."

Pt Michael 'Paddy' Padmore, 27, from Shelfield who has been on two tours of duty in Afghanistan and was also invovled in security operations during the London Olympics, commented: "When I was out on the ground in Afghanistan I served alongside Reserve soldiers seconded to us as individuals and so knew they could handle it.

"This is my job. They give up their own time to do it. I have got a lot of respect for them."

Pt Matt Lock, 22, from Stafford and a former pupil at the town's King Edwards School, served with 3Mercian after joining the army in 2011 and returned from nine months in Afghanistan with 3Mercian before returning to this country to join 2Mercian in September.

He said: "Going on an exercise together is the best way for us all to bond. If we do any more operational tours the blokes from 4Mercian are going to be alongside us. I served with Reserve soldiers in Afghanistan and so have no worries. We will integrate more and more after every joint exercise. If you do not work as a team you are floored from the start oen operations."

Colour Sgt Paul Bywater, 46-year-old ceramics worker from Rugeley who has been with 4Mercian for 16 years during which he has served three times in Afghanistan, and once in Iraq, said: "I have been on operations serving alongside regular soldiers. I knew that this would work. The gap between the reserve and regular soldiers has been narrowing and it will get even closer as the regulars bring us on. It is an exciting future for us."

Other exercises and tours on which 2 and 4Mercian will combine forces are likely to include operations in the Kenyan bush, Uganda and Croatia.

Lt Col Gilby concluded: "Our regular and reserve soldiers have been working as one group building up working and personal relationships. Our reserve soldiers are just as dedicated and motivated as a full-time regular soldier."