James Francis FOY

FOY, James Francis

Service Number: 809
Enlisted: Not yet discovered
Last Rank: Sergeant
Last Unit: 44th Infantry Battalion
Born: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 1892
Home Town: Perth, Western Australia
Schooling: Not yet discovered
Occupation: Labourer
Died: Killed in Action, France, 14 March 1917
Cemetery: Cite Bonjean Military Cemetery, Armentieres
Memorials: Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour
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World War 1 Service

6 Jun 1916: Involvement AIF WW1, Sergeant, 809, 44th Infantry Battalion, Enlistment/Embarkation WW1, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '18' embarkation_place: Fremantle embarkation_ship: HMAT Suevic embarkation_ship_number: A29 public_note: ''
14 Mar 1917: Involvement AIF WW1, Sergeant, 809, 44th Infantry Battalion, Killed in action in a Battalion raid near Armentieres

The Last Game - 44th Battalion March 1917

Saturday 13 May 1916 Perth and East Fremantle played at the WACA Oval - the game was the best of the day. Perth won, being captained by Jimmy Foy. It was Sergeant Foy's last game before leaving Australia on 9 June 1916 for the Western front with the 44th Battalion. Foy had proved to be an excellent instructor within the Battalion for bayonet fighting and physical training.

On the night of the 13th/14 March 1917 the 44th Battalion had planned a ‘Big Raid’ in the Armentieres sector of the Western Front. The raid would consist of 6 officers and 400 men. Foy immediately volunteered for the raid. Lieutenant ‘Sammy’ Taylor an extremely popular officer would be in charge of the assault.

Luck was against the Battalion on this occasion. For days prior to the raid it rained incessantly and no man’s land was amass of mud ditches and shell holes full of water. While the large group of Raiders were assembling in no man’s land they were seen by a German Searchlight. At midnight the Australian barrage in support of the raid opened up German front line. Almost immediately the Germans replied with artillery targeted onto the Raiders assembled in no man’s land. So accurate and sudden was the artillery that it was apparent to everyone concerned that the first element of success – surprise - was not with the attackers. The raid went ahead but only for a short while as the German machine gun crews were trained ready on the 400 of the 44th Battalion.

Sammy Taylor gave his last order, an order to retire before being shot through the neck and dying shortly after. Another casualty of the 20 killed and 45 wounded during the raid was Sergeant “Jimmy” Foy the superb athlete from Perth who had played with the East Perth Football Club. Returning from the front line Foy was wounded through the thigh, his mate said that he was in great pain and asked to be left. The very next time they talked to him he had died

It was said he was another soldier whom the Battalion could ill afford to lose

Both men are buried at Bonjean Cemetery.

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