Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

MICK LAST

Tribute by Paul Benjamin - "The Caringbah R.S.L. News" - November 1967

CYRIL WHAYMAN LAST, Mick as he was known to his mates, enlisted in the A.I.F. in 1941* and after initial training was drafted to a Signals Unit in Darwin.

From here, a task force was assembled to go across and occupy Timor Island as a forward base to stall the Japanese push coming down through Malaya and the Islands to the north.

On February 13th, 1942, Mick's unit, known as Sparrow Force Signals, was embarked on an old American tramp steamer the MEIGS, and joined a convoy of about a dozen boats to make the crossing.

All who recall the war remember the scarcity of equipment and can well believe that some of the trucks which had been commandeered and issued to the unit were not even in going order and had to be towed on to the boat.

Mick had earned for himself a reputation amongst his mates that if there was anything going on, he would be in it. At one stage, during their posting in Darwin, Mick had organised the construction of a raft made from beer barrels and this was used for fishing to supplement the units iron rations. One day, when a party was on the raft fishing, they were caught in a rip tide and were being swept out to sea. Mick, sensing disaster, jumped off and swam to some rocks and anchored the raft, thus averting a predicament which could have ended in disaster.

Food on the boat was so poor that after a day at sea the chaps were hungry. Recalling the experience for me, one of Mick's mates, Phil Taylor, said that Mick, as usual, went on the scrounge to see what could be found. Crawling along a narrow ledge to a porthole he squeezed himself into the galley and while the two Negro cooks had their attention diverted he passed several plates of cookies out to his mates.

The old boats comprising the convoy made only snail's pace and it was taking days to make the crossing. As they neared Timor the men were basking in the morning sun, the band was playing, when suddenly a squadron of planes dived out of the blue and bombs rained down on them. The Japs had beaten them to it. Several of the boats were sunk but fortunately for Sparrow Force the old MEIGS escaped and with the other survivors hobbled back to Darwin, arriving on 18th February.

Next day Darwin was bombed and Mick was, the sole survivor of the party he was with when a bomb blasted them just outside the Post Office. As he ran for cover Mick was spied and strafed by a Jap fighter plane. His rifle was knocked from his hand when one bullet grazed his side, otherwise he was only badly shaken.

Following the raid, panic reigned and within a short time the only ones who seem to be left in Darwin were the A/A boys and Signals Unit. The war had come to Australia.

When the Sparrow Force reorganised they occupied the Government Barracks for single women. Soon it was necessary to disperse from Darwin and Sparrow Force was attached to 23rd Brig. H.Q. at Winnelli, 22 miles south.

Here again Mick's ability to scrounge was to be very helpful in supplementing meagre supplies of food and equipment. Water was scarce and rationed to a bottle per man per day.

After only a few weeks at Winnelli the Sparrow Force boys suffered a blow when Mick Last was posted back to Darwin and the mateship which had lasted over a long period was now broken. Mick was very much missed by his old mates, but as things turned out he could not have remained with them much longer for he was selected to do an officer's course and posted back to Adelaide.

During his Officer's Training Course Mick's health began to deteriorate as a result of his service in the North and eventually this lead to his being boarded out of the A.I.F. in November 1944. He had served for a period of 1026 days.

In civilian occupation again, Mick settled on a poultry farm at Lugarno. Later he invested in a mixed farm at Menai and it is on this farm, named "Pretty Waters", that his family is now living.

For an interval of five years Mick and his family lived at Taren Point and in this period he proved his citizenship by taking an active interest in community affairs, including the Caringbah High School Development Association.

When his house at Taren Point was resumed for construction of the Captain Cook Bridge, Mick and his family returned to "Pretty Waters". At the time of his death, besides his interest in the farm which was a hobby for him and his three sons, Mick was employed as maintenance engineer at Mead-Johnsons in The Boulevarde, Caringbah. Here again, Mick earned the respect of those who worked with him.

At Menai he was also active in community affairs, at one time being Captain of the Fire Brigade.

Our sincere sympathy goes to Mick's widow, Kathleen, and to the family, Michael, James, Patrick and Kathie. The R.S.L. tribute was paid at the funeral service at Woronora Crematorium where a large number of friends assembled to honour Cyril Whayman Last.

*Edit note by Michael Last: Cyril’s enlisted on 1st October 1940 at Paddington, Sydney, New South Wales.