b. 1982 Harlow, Essex.
DATE OF CGC ACTION: 09/2007 Helmand Province, Afghanistan.
Simon T Cupples CGC
Simon Cupples was born in Harlow, Essex, but as a child moved to Derbyshire. He enlisted with The Mercian Regiment. He married his childhood sweetheart Louise in 2007, shortly before he was deployed to Afghanistan as a Platoon Commander. In September 2007, Lieutenant Cupples’ gallantry would lead to the award of the Conspicuous Gallantry Cross.
One night in Helmand Province, that pledge was put to the test. In a terrifying split second, the close-knit group from one of the Army’s most battle-scarred units came under fire from a hail of Taliban bullets and rocket-powered grenades.
Four men were hit and several others temporarily blinded by phosphorus. Their screams of pain cut through the darkness as the ambushed platoon was pinned down by gunfire from two sides. But the men of 2nd Battalion the Mercian Regiment knew precisely what they had to do.
The ambush near the frontline town of Garmsir underlined the extreme danger that troops face daily in what has turned into a bloody and difficult war. It played out into a six-hour pitched battle as both sides poured in reinforcements. But true to the pact, Lt Cupples and his men refused to withdraw until the bodies of two fallen comrades were recovered. Telling their families back home that no one knew what happened to them, he decided, was “simply not an option”.
The young officer, now a captain, recalled how his men were advancing under cover of darkness when they came under devastating fire from a Taliban trench just 20 yards away, and then from other enemy positions. “I could tell we had taken serious casualties.” he said. “There was screaming from the men around me. Because we were so close to the enemy it was very difficult to withdraw and regroup, but we couldn’t leave the casualties. “It was asking a lot for the blokes to run forward into enemy fire like that. “But they did it because their mates were out there. When you live and serve with your men like that it creates a very special bond. You would do anything for those guys. That’s what drove the soldiers forward.”
Following the award of the CGC, Cupples has since risen to the rank of Major.
CGC CITATION:
Lieutenant Simon Timothy CUPPLES CGC
The Mercian Regiment
Platoon Commander
Helmand Province Sep 07
“Cupples’ section was caught in open ground by very intense and accurate enemy fire and sustained several casualties. He rallied a team of five men and led them to the killing zone on four separate occasions, painstakingly recovering three of the casualties. For the fifth time, he crawled forward in an attempt to recover the last casualty but the remorseless intensity of the enemy fire forced him to withdraw. He was utterly determined not to leave his soldier behind and subsequently commanded a rescue team who successfully recovered the soldier.”
LOCATION OF MEDAL: WITH RECIPIENT.
