Remembering the Fallen: on this day in 2007, Guardsman Daryl Hickey, 1st Battalion, Grenadier Guards, was killed in Afghanistan. His company platoon was operating in support of 1st Battalion The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment Battlegroup. He was part of a team providing covering fire as others in his platoon assaulted a Taliban position. The assault was successful, but Guardsman Hickey suffered a gunshot wound and despite the best efforts of emergency medical staff he was pronounced dead on arrival at the field hospital. He had joined the army six years earlier, and had served in Northern Ireland and Iraq. He is remembered by comrades as full of life and kind, boosting morale with his sense of humour, and a true Guardsman. His commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel Carew Hatherley, said: “Guardsman Hickey was a quiet and thoughtful character who was fun to be with both on and off duty. Immensely proud to be a Grenadier, whether in tunic and bearskin or combats, he was held in the highest regard by all who served alongside him. We knew each other well enough that he could joke with me whenever we met, it was invariably at my expense. He had been fighting the Taliban on an operation that had at times been nothing short of ferocious, shoulder to shoulder with the others in his platoon, and in whose company he also died. He gave his life in selfless service to his country and his courage and determination is an inspiration to us all. He will be sorely missed and never forgotten.” Daryl, from Birmingham, was 27 years old.