SPARTANS & ANZACS Exhibition Opens
The "SPARTANS & ANZACS" Exhibition at The Shrine, Melbourne went "live" on Wednesday 15 April 2026. The 2/2nd Field Regiment Association Inc. has played a significant role in promoting, meetings and providing artefacts to The Shrine to assist in the presentation which will be displayed through until April 2027. Prior to commenting and displaying a few photos, I would like to acknowledge in particular Shrine curator Mr. Neil Sharkey, Association Historian & Life Member Mr. Terry Cole and Secretary & Life Member Mrs. Mel Johnson for their contribution, knowledge and advice to The Shrine over an extended period of negotiations. A special thank you to contributors of precious family artefacts for loaning to The Shrine their irreplaceable memorabilia for an extended period. I visited The Shrine the day after the opening and several things immediately were strikingly noticeable. Firstly, the bright orange theme was a standout and made me drawn to it as it must of with others as there was a sizeable gathering forming and viewing the exhibition. The lead in takes you back to 480 BC and traces through the Spartan war led by King Leonidas at the "Thermopyle Line" right through to 1941 where the 6th Division and our forebears fought at the same location and with Brallos Pass looking over the line. There is a very well produced audio visual within the exhibition that is well worth taking the time to watch. Whilst there are many highlights and quite a bit to take in, the original Spartan armour, helmets and daggers dating back 1000 BC are amazing and the donor should be acknowledged for allowing these massively valuable artefacts to be exhibited and loaned for the period of the exhibition. As a final touch there are 3 original "Dargie" paintings on loan from the Australian War Memorial which are National treasures themselves! If you are planning a visit, and we hope you will support the work put in, I would recommend you allow a good 90 minutes to view, read the stories, take photos etc. Of course, there is much, much more to see in addition to this exhibition that is worth taking in. There are Shrine volunteers available to answer questions and to point you in the right direction. Entry is free via the visitor education entrance (to the left facing The Shrine), take the 5-6 steps up through the military medal displays, turn right then at the end turn left and the display is before you. There is a small cafe and clean toilets and a gift shop as you enter . Enjoy your visit and please "Blog" and tell us what you thought of the exhibition. Malcolm Fallon President
Anzac Day March
WHERE: The 2/2nd Field Regiment Association WILL form up in Collins Street, East of Bourke Street, Melbourne with the 6th Division. WHEN: Saturday 25 April 2026 TIME: 0830 – 0900hrs GENERAL INFORMATION FOR THE MARCH:
AT THE SHRINE:
Action Front - April 2026 Welcome to the April 2026 edition of ACTION FRONT!! It's time to grab a cuppa and find a comfy chair. This edition is packed full of information and articles. Thank you to all that have contributed to this edition, we hope you enjoy, so please click below to download your edition of ACTION FRONT. 
Sign RSL Petition to prevent Government sell off of Defence sites.With the Federal Government announcing that they are proposing to sell off historical Defence sites in Australia, the RSL has publicised their position and subsequently launched a petition for concerned Australians to oppose the said sell off. If you as a member or follower of the 2nd 2nd Field Regiment Association Inc would like to sign the petition, the Association provides a step by step instruction below to best guide you how to sign the petition. * Go to links "LINKS" in the tool bar in our website, the drop down menu shows links to various organisations; * Select RSL Australia icon which will take you directly to their website; * Scroll down in their items and first on the left of screen is sign the petition; * Click sign and fill in your name, email and click send. * Done! Your Association moved at its last Committee meeting to write to the RSL in support of opposing the Government sell off which we have now done. We encourage you, as an individual to also sign the petition. Kindest regards Malcolm Fallon President. Exhibition - Coming April 2026  Exhibition The SHRINE MELBOURNE & 2/2nd FIELD REGIMENT ASSOCIATION Inc. Proudly present: The story of the Australian 6th Division & New Zealand 2nd Division resisting the invasion of the German army for 72 hours in the battle of Greece known as the “Thermopyle line at Brallos Pass”. Lieutenant (later Captain) John Anderson was awarded the Miltary Cross for his bravery. This action saved thousands of servicemen being killed, wounded or taken prisoners of war. The story of the heroic actions of the 2/2nd Field Regiment at “Brallos Pass”, the strategic withdrawal of troops to Crete, and further withdrawal from Crete back to The Middle East. The exhibition will open in The Shrine vaults in early April 2026 and stay “in residence” until April 2027. Original artifacts held by families of 2/2nd servicemen will be an added feature of the exhibition along with audio visual and much more. It is hoped that 2/2nd Field Regiment descendants and artillery personal in particular will make an effort to visit the exhibition during 2026-27. The 2/2nd Field Regiment Association is grateful The Shrine has seen fit to exhibit the story of the not widely acknowledged Thermopyle line & Brallos Pass conflict. It is also not widely known the 2/2nd Field Regiment Association commissioned a memorial on the site of the conflict which was officially unveiled in 2016. For further information please visit the Association website at: www.2nd2ndfieldreg.com.au President: Malcolm Fallon M: 0417 326 970 E: [email protected] Australia Day 2026
Australia Day: Simply, What our Forebears fought for.
94th Anniversary |
|||||||||||||||||
 |  |
Salvo's Startling Find of Historic Flag
In an extraordinary set of coincidences, an Australian Flag with the names of 27 Australian Diggers (26 from the 2/2 Field Regiment) has been handed into the Salvo's shop in Clyde North in Melbourne's southeast suburbs. The flag was in a rubbish bag of wet clothing found in a dumpster by a forager and when there was nothing of value to him took it to the Salvo's.
Volunteer worker Yvonne Ross when going through the contents thought it strange to find the flag and alerted her boss Kylie Baker to the find. Both agreed the flag may have some historical value. Taking the flag home to her ex-serviceman father to have a look at, Kylie's father Denis Holland noted the "2/2FLD REG" written on the flag.
This led to an internet search where our new website was the first site to come up. President Malcolm Fallon was contacted to ascertain were we still an active Association and informed of the find. After receiving some photos and a bit of detective work we were sure that the flag certainly related to the 2/2nd Field Regiment and the names and VX numbers all correlated.
Fast forward to Friday 21 November and Association Historian Terry Cole and the President met with the Salvo's at the store where a formal handing over of the flag was conducted. In front of the Salvo volunteers, an emotional Denis Holland (RSL member at Springvale) formally handed the flag to the President for safe keeping.
A couple of speeches were made with the Association presenting a framed letter of appreciation to the shop recognising their diligence, thoughtfulness and care for the flag whilst in their possession. A small morning tea followed the presentation.
Attending from the Salvo's were Regional Manager Leigh Murphy, Chaplain Bronwyn Bethell, Flag finder Yvonne Ross, Store Manager Annette Camilleri, Ass. Manager Kylie Baker, store staff and shoppers, Mr Denis Holland and Mrs Sue Holland, The Association's President Malcolm Fallon and Historian Terry Cole.
The near 85-year-old flag is in good condition considering what it has been through with the names and VX number quite readable.
So who wrote their names on the flag?
SX10747 SHAW, Jerrald
VX14413 PITTS, Charles
VX33128 CAMPBELL, Robert
VX35403 CRAIG, Sydney
VX36526 HOY, Alan
VX36993 HUGHES, William
VX37962 McMAHON, Robert
VX37998 BLAIR, Francis
VX39986 WILLIAMS, Frederick
VX43473 HOGAN, Daniel
VX44812 STAGG, Ernest
VX45203 GILLETT, Robert (non 2/2)
VX50217 MAHONEY, Athol
VX50243 CLANCY, Maurice
VX50373 MOORE, Robert
VX50663 SMITH, Kenneth
VX51245 LYALL, R. J.
VX51263 CARTER, William
VX51499 STEINDL, Anthony
VX51608 JONES, Joseph
VX51783 SUTTON, Frank
VX52059 MERCER, Malcolm
VX52421 DODD, Keith
VX53276 THOMPSON, Ronald
VX53760 BISHOP, Keith
VX53771 HOPKINS, Frederick
VX512919 ISAAC, Arnold
It goes without saying, if you have any info that may lead us to who held this flag for so many (80+) years we would love to hear from you.
The flag will find a place in the upcoming exhibition at The Shrine in 2026-27 and the Association will explore the best way to preserve the flag as part of our history.
The Association will be forever indebted to the Salvation Army and recognise and acknowledge the work volunteers perform within the community.
L-R: Association Historian Terry Cole, Flag "finder" Yvonne Ross, Mr Denis Holland, Mrs Sue Holland, President Malcolm Fallon, Store Asst. Manager Kylie Baker and Chaplain Bronwyn Bethell. ​Photo courtesy: Cranbourne Star newspaper (with permission).
Annual Luncheon & AGM
Sunday 26 October 2025 saw the 86th Annual Luncheon and AGM held at the Waverley RSL in Glen Waverley, Victoria. Over 40 members and guests attended this year's event. The first part of the gathering saw the Annual General Meeting conducted. This saw the election of committee members, president and treasurer reports tabled and updates on association activities for the past 12 months, with an update also provided on what is to come in the next 12 months.
Once the AGM was concluded, members and guests were then treated with a presentation by guest of honour Neil Sharkey, Curator at The Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Victoria. Neil has been the curator at the Shrine since 2007, and his passion and knowledge kept everyone engaged and was very well received by all.
Once the AGM was concluded, members and guests were then treated with a presentation by guest of honour Neil Sharkey, Curator at The Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Victoria. Neil has been the curator at the Shrine since 2007, and his passion and knowledge kept everyone engaged and was very well received by all.
But undoubtably, the highlight of the day was the Life Membership awarded to our long serving secretary, Mrs. Mel Johnson. Congratulations Mel, and to find out more about Mel and her life membership, you can read about it in a previous blog post on this website by clicking here - LIFE MEMBERSHIP FOR SECRETARY -
Finally, congratulations to those elected to serve the association for the next 12 months:
President: Mr. Malcolm Fallon
Vice President: Mr. Derek Trewarne
Secretary: Mrs. Mel Johnson
Treasurer: Mr. Kim Taunt
Committee Members: Mr. Terry Cole, Ms. Sarah Jaboor,
Mr. John Trewarne, Mr. Robert Lennie, Mr. Lee Fallon & Ms Elyssa Wilson.
Finally, congratulations to those elected to serve the association for the next 12 months:
President: Mr. Malcolm Fallon
Vice President: Mr. Derek Trewarne
Secretary: Mrs. Mel Johnson
Treasurer: Mr. Kim Taunt
Committee Members: Mr. Terry Cole, Ms. Sarah Jaboor,
Mr. John Trewarne, Mr. Robert Lennie, Mr. Lee Fallon & Ms Elyssa Wilson.