BOWDITCH SANDPIT SAGA REVIVED IN ROYAL VISIT

When Channel 7 covered the visit of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex  to  Fraser  Island, Queensland,it showed  footage of  Z Special  Force  commandoes  training  , which  included unarmed combat,  in  WWll . The  extremely interesting   Fraser Island  flashback   included  vision  of  soldiers who  appeared  to  be  wrestling  in  a circular sandpit .

 

 By Peter Simon

 

This caused me to sit bolt upright  and  stare at the screen in the hope that I would identify the  late and great  crusading   editor of the   Northern Territory News ,  James  Frederick Bowditch ,  known as  Big Jim  , because  he had  told me  in  great detail  what went on  in  and  around  that  sandpit .

 

During his time on Fraser island ,  the  unarmed combat instructor  was  professional wrestler , Major Reg  McCissock , from Perth , Western Australia. A huge man , McCissock's  tent  was  near a sandbagged  sandpit , and  he would attack  men at any hour  of  the  night and day to test  their  readiness . "You would be coming out of  your tent first thing in the morning , hear a noise and it was  the unarmed  combat instructor  flying at you feet  first , " Bowditch told me." It was like Peter Sellers  playing  the crazy  Inspector Clouseau  and  his oriental  servant  who  tried  to  catch him  off  guard . "

 

Another  Z Force member , the late  Jack Sue, of West Australia ,   told  me  about  an  episode involving McCissock  and Sue's cousin, Peter Wong, on Fraser Island . Wong heard " mad screaming " coming from McCissock's tent ; he  came running out with a  rifle to which was attached a bayonet, which he threw at much smaller Wong .   Nimble Wong ,  adept  at unarmed combat , stepped aside  and  threw the  rifle into  the sandpit .

 

They grappled  and  at one stage  McCissock had Wong in a Boston crab wrestling hold  in  the sandpit .  He  informed   onlooking soldiers that when they had  a "bastard "  down they should rub his head   into the sand , and proceeded to do so . Wong " did his block" ,  and threw the instructor out of the pit .    McCissock  declared he was delighted to see some   spirit from Wong- and rushed back  at  him . After being  thrown out three times , McCissock reportedly stated ,"Okay, Wong, you are a  better man than  I am Gunga-din."

UPCOMING : More  posts about  Big Jim  Bowditch .