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2Lt Palmer Price
South Africa Military Skills Competition
Ex SPRINGBOK 19
20 – 27 October 2019
Ex SPRINGBOK 19 was organised to deliver a challenging, relevant and physically demanding Military Skills Competition which also provided Defence Engagement by the UK Army Reserve with their counterparts from other nations especially South Africa. It also helped to foster co-operation and understanding between differing cultures in the reserve’s military environment.
In 2019, the Queen’s Own Yeomanry was invited to put together a team as part of the British contingent competing in a military skills competition in South Africa, organised by the South African National Defence Force (SANDF). Whilst the British Army has participated in this competition for many years, this would be the first time that the QOY had sent a team.
The team led by myself, that arrived at Heathrow on the 19th of October, consisted of B Squadron dominated team made up of Sgt Clayton, Cpl Grossmith and LCpl Johnson. With an uneventful but long flight down to Johannesburg, we were met in the airport on the Sunday morning by the other British teams. We were also met by representatives of the SANDF. They loaded us on to coaches for the two-hour journey north, to the town of Potchefstroom, where the competition would be held.
4 Artillery Regiment were our hosts for the duration, and on our arrival we dived straight into our RSOI package. As part of this, on Monday morning, we were given a series of briefs on the history of the competition, its makeup and the rules and regulations that governed it. Monday also gave us the opportunity to meet some of the other competitors from around the world. These included the USA, Nigeria, Germany and the Democratic Republic of Congo, so it was great to see the varieties of experience and background we would be competing with.
Having finished this initial phase, we progressed onto the pre-competition training phase. This started with the water-based obstacle course. The course was a fifty metre pool with a series of obstacles, which we individually had to negotiate. The SANDF gave us a demonstration on the best ways to complete the course, before giving us time to practice on our own.
Tuesday brought us into contact with the weapon systems used by the SANDF. These are what we would be using in the assessed shoot later on in the week. We began using their primary weapon which is the R4, and, after a familiarisation brief, we were given the opportunity to get comfortable with the layout of the assessed shoot. Later on in the day, we moved onto the pistol shoot, principally using the Z88 9 mm pistols. Both the pistol shoot, and the rifle range challenged one subaltern particularly, though the rest of the QOY team were keen to show off their marksmanship skills in the coming days.
The following day, we met the obstacle course. On first sight, it seemed easier-going and simple, in comparison to our own assault courses in the UK. This first impression turned out to be false, however as the competition tested the level of individual skill over the course, rather than working as part of team as we are accustomed to back at home. After we had done this, we had the opportunity to see more of Potchefstroom.
On Wednesday evening, SANDF invited the entire international contingent to a Braai - traditional South African barbeque. This involved an almost terrifying quantity of steak, with chicken being viewed by South Africans as the vegetable component for the meal! After this culinary challenge, we were treated to an unforgettable dance performance performed by the local tribe of the area. This was accompanied by the opportunity to try the tribe’s homemade beer and food, delicacies that were quite literally out of this world. In fact, we were not quite sure what was in them, though it’s true to say they were a long way from the pies of Wigan!
The British contingent, the QOY included, first competed in the rifle and pistol shoots. Despite working in very hot conditions reaching up to 38°Celsius, most of the team were able to score well on the pistol, before moving on to the rifle shoot later in the morning. Cpl Grossmith, in particular, showed a good level of skill with both rifle and pistol. This was despite only having had the benefit of a 30-round shoot practice a few days before. Once again, the shooting from the subaltern element of the contingent left much to be desired.
We then proceeded on to the competitive water obstacle course, which provided some sorely needed relief from the heat. Again, while “speedy” and “elegant” were not often the adjectives to be applied to this water challenge, there was no doubting the determination to complete each of the obstacles without incurring any time penalties for missing an obstacle or completing it incorrectly.
The day finished with another Braai, which was also attended by Major-General O’Leary, Deputy Commander Field Army, along with senior members of the SANDF. This gave the opportunity for the competing soldiers to relax and give feedback on how they had enjoyed the competition and the host nation so far.
Friday was to be the last full day of the competition. This began with the grenade throw - attempting to get sixteen practice grenades on to four separate targets. The team performed strongly in this, with a particular highlight being Sgt Clayton’s final throw which ended up in the rough, some distance from the designated inbounds area.
With this completed, the QOY team moved on to the individual obstacle course. We all agreed that this was the toughest event of the competition. This was due to the strenuous nature of the course, the heat that had crept up throughout the day, and finally to the large quantities of dust and sand inhaled in one of the early obstacles. Nevertheless, two thirds of the team were able to complete the course with a credible time, while one was just outside of the qualifying bracket.
The competition came to a conclusion on the Saturday morning with a 8km combat run. Fortunately, this was done in the morning before the heat could impact.. Again, the fitness of the QOY team was apparent, with all of the team placing in the top third of the competitors, and Sgt Clayton placing amongst the fastest of the British soldiers.
With this over, the SANDF very considerately gave us the opportunity to see a memorable victory by the England Rugby team over the All Blacks. This put everyone in the right mood for the closing ceremony which included speeches, presentation of awards and finally gifts from the visiting nations to the South African hosts. This was followed by a dinner which gave the British teams to socialise with the SANDF soldiers and look back on what had been a highly enjoyable competition.
In summary, the week in South Africa was a fantastic opportunity not only to pit our own proficiency at military skills against other nations’ armed forces. We also got to compete in an environment very different from our own training areas, and with people from a range of different backgrounds. Hopefully, this initial experience will be used in future competitions, to achieve greater success for the regiment.
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