Cadet Cpl Macsen Morgan 207 Detachment tells the story of Venturer ANZUK 25

On the 3 July 2025, 20 cadets and 5 CFAVs from Middlesex and Northwest London travelled to Australia in order to take part in Exercise VENTURER ANZUK 25 alongside cadets from New South Wales brigade AAC and the New Zealand Cadet Corps. After a 21 hour long journey, the cadets touched down in Sydney airport and then made their way to Timor barracks in Dundas, Sydney which would serve as the base of operations for the majority of the trip. The cadets had their first opportunity to meet their Australian counterparts in a visit to Lancer Barracks, Parramatta where our host unit is based. They were treated to their first BBQ and to a display of vehicles used by the Royal NSW Lancers from WWI all the way up to Vietnam including ACE which is a fully functioning Matilda tank which served in the Pacific theatre of WWII.

There was no shortage of opportunities for the cadets to educate themselves on ANZAC military history with visits to the National Maritime Museum, The Australian Army Museum of Military Policing and The Australian Army Museum of Military Engineering which gave the cadets an in depth insight into the history of many of the major parts of the Australian Defence Force and showcased the similarities and differences with their British counterparts. The most poignant visit of the first week was most definitely that to the ANZAC memorial located in the centre of Sydney which was educational, interesting and a reminder of the significant sacrifices made by the Australians and New Zealanders in wars ranging from the Boer War to Iraq and Afghanistan. The final significant event in Sydney was a visit to Government House where the cadets were delighted to receive a coin celebrating the coronation of His Majesty The King courtesy of the Governor General’s private secretary, Colonel Miller RFD.

On day 7 of the exercise, the British cadets were joined by the Australian contingent from 22 battalion AAC in order to begin their 6 day tour around the state of New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory of Canberra. Following a lengthy coach journey to Canberra the first stop was ANZAC parade which is lined with 13 beautiful memorials honouring the sacrifices of Australian and New Zealand troops. This visit was enhanced as our Australian hosts shared their knowledge of the events covered by the memorials. On completion it was then on to Royal Military College Duntroon (Sandhurst equivalent) which would be home for the next three days.

Over the three days at Duntroon, the cadets were joined by the New Zealand contingent who were coming off the back of their amazing victory at the Australian Chief of Army Cadet Team Challenge. The cadets also toured Duntroon and took part in command tasks alongside the Australians in mixed teams which built stronger bonds between the cadets from both nations. On the last day in Canberra, the cadets from all three nations visited Parliament house which provided yet another interesting and educational experience showcasing the differences and similarities between the British and Australian institutions. After this, the cadets took part in the daily Last Post Ceremony at the Australian War Memorial where all three nations lined the Pool of Reflection and a wreath was laid on behalf of the cadet forces. This particular ceremony was in memory of PVT R.L Cornwell who sacrificed his life taking Tobruk in Libya in WW2.

Once their time at Duntroon was over, the cadets visited the recruit training centre at Kapooka and were then able to meet cadets from the 24th Battalion AAC based at Wagga Wagga. The cadets found this particular day to be one of the best representations of the ANZUK spirit with activities like a barbecue and even a tri-nation rugby game which everyone thoroughly enjoyed. Cpl Corneschi (216 Tottenham) said that “It was one of the best cadet bonding experiences I’ve had and it really represented the spirit of ANZUK”. The three nations were the opportunity to deliver presentations on a variety of topics with the British cadets speaking on the history and structure of the ACF and their different cap badges, the New Zealanders spoke on their recent competition victory and the Australians gave us a brief history of Kapooka barracks. The following day it was then onto Cowra where the cadets learnt about the tragic Cowra breakout led which led to the deaths of 235 Japanese POWs and which was once again a sobering reminder to the reality of life in wartime. The cadets laid a wreath in the Cowra Commonwealth War Graves cemetery before driving on to stay with another Australian cadet unit at Marrangaroo where they enjoyed another delicious BBQ. On the way to this destination the coach did a circuit of the Mount Panorama race circuit – but no records were broken!

Following a chilly night, the following morning the cadets spent half a day at Scenic World in The Blue Mountains where everyone agreed that the name Scenic World did not do justice to the views on offer. Here they rode cable cars across the canyon, the steepest railway train in the world and explored the fauna and flora along the many footpaths down in the valley. All to soon it was time to return to Sydney and our last couple of nights in Timor barracks although we still had some touring to do.

The following day we took a train into Sydney and walked across the famous harbour bridge before catching the ferry to Manly which is right on the outer edge of the harbour. We had time for a visit to the beach – too cold to swim – and a quick lunch before returning to the City centre. There we visited the Sky Tower and its amazing views as well as experiencing a VR ride around the outside of the tower – weird but great fun. That evening we had the ENDEX dinner where some presentations were made to the staff and enjoyed another excellent BBQ given by our hosts.

On the morning of the final day we visited Paddy’s market on the way to the airport for some essential souvenir buying before starting the long flight home via Singapore. On the way back we had time to look back on a brilliant two week experience and reflect on what we had seen and the new friends that we had made. We are looking forward to hopefully meeting up again in 2026 for VENTURER ANZUK SOMME 26.

A selection of comments from those who took part:

Cadet LCpl Donaldson. 19 Coy The trip itself put me out of my comfort zone as I was meeting new people in a different country, but I’m very glad that I went on it because it was great fun.”

2nd Lt Victoria Hill 19 Coy: During the exercise I experienced many opportunities that were a once in a lifetime experience that I never would've done had it not been for army cadets. This included seeing the New Zealand cadet Haka in person and lining the Pool of Reflection at the last post ceremony. The trip was extremely worth it and I would encourage everyone to try to gain this experience.

Nicole Dosanjh 19 Coy: I found this trip to be a truly unforgettable experience as it gave me the chance to connect with new people as well as reconnect with friends I had made last year, all while learning more about Australian history and their diverse culture. Throughout the two weeks we visited a range of museums, war memorials and wildlife parks. I particularly liked our visit to Blue Mountains scenic world as it was a serene experience and allowed us to strengthen our bond with our Australian hosts. I am very grateful to have been given to opportunity to participate in this trip as it is something I would not be able to have done outside of cadets