Thomas Walter DARCY

DARCY, Thomas Walter

Service Number: SX30602
Enlisted: 8 October 1942, Sydney, NSW
Last Rank: Lance Corporal
Last Unit: 27th Infantry Battalion
Born: Victoria Park, WA, 17 October 1921
Home Town: Kalgoorlie, Kalgoorlie/Boulder, Western Australia
Schooling: Not yet discovered
Occupation: Not yet discovered
Memorials:
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World War 2 Service

8 Oct 1942: Involvement Lance Corporal, SX30602, 27th Infantry Battalion
8 Oct 1942: Enlisted Sydney, NSW
8 Oct 1942: Enlisted Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Lance Corporal, SX30602
21 Mar 1946: Discharged
21 Mar 1946: Discharged Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Lance Corporal, SX30602

Kevin Bruce recalls

Taken from Kevin D Bruce's story

My first months in the army, we spent in tents on the Larges Bay oval and we trained to be machine gunners. Each night we patrolled the beaches between Larges and Semaphore, we even made machine gun nests on the beaches. It was here that I met the bloke who was to be my best army mate, a West-Aussie lad, born and bred in Kalgoorlie, Wally Darcy (Dare).
Sometimes the CO, a big-hearted army major, would give us a couple of hours off and some of us, who would like a glass of lager, would patronise the Largs Pier Hotel. So my mate Wally and I would adjourn to the Largs Pier front bar, along with Felix and Bob Kimpton from Pinnaroo. One hot afternoon, sitting at the front bar, enjoying a glass of liquid amber, Dare and I have a difference of opinion. Next minute we're both throwing punches and it's on. Lasts about half a round and I finish up sitting on and cracking the big mirror they had parked in the bar. So, Dare did me; and I was not happy, so I said "outside Dare", and out the back we went, and it was on again. Fisticuffs and yours truly finished up sitting in a big bush, so I conceded Dare as victor.
Six months later I found out the reason why he had managed to give me such a thumping and a boxing lesson. He invited me to go on home leave with him to Kalgoorlie, so we spent 3 days on a troop train to get there. He used to work at the brewery, so one day we went down to see his workmates and they brought out a large enamel bucket full of beer, a champion drop, and the chaps are saying "Welcome home Champ, hope you enjoy home leave Champ". I asked a chap why they all called him Champ. I mean Dare was a sportsman, an ordinary footballer, an ordinary cricketer. This bloke then tells me that Dare is the champion pug of Kalgoorlie! He asked if Dare had not told me of his pugging knowledge. I answered "No, I learnt the hard way, he done me twice!" We were always great mates and spent our home leaves together. We only got two leaves in five and a half year’s service, the army was a tough boss and there was a war on.
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