Mr Tyndall has 10 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren, among them is granddaughter Yvette Robins, who said she wouldn’t miss the chance to pay tribute to her “hero” and his mates.

“I’ll be there for my pop and all the other soldiers who served,” Yvette said.

“It’s an important day for him and for our whole family. We think ourselves extremely lucky to have him still. We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for him and what he and the others did for this country.”

Eighty-five-year-old Cecil is the vice president of the Griffith RSL sub branch. He served with the 103 Tank Attack and even now, 66 years later, memories of his harrowing time at war occupy his thoughts.

He recalls being sent to Cowra when the Japanese broke out and having to transport the POW to Hay in 1944.

Some of the more vivid memories include a sea landing at Borneo in 1945.

“It was pretty frightening stuff. The beach was infested with land mines and all the oil wells were alight,” he said.

“Breathing in those fumes was hard. The first day wasn’t too bad but after that the Japs gave us a bit of a gruelling.

“At night we put a wire perimeter around our camp, we used to hang cans from it to warn us the Japs were coming in. Sometimes I still see the things that happened in my mind. I don’t think it will ever leave me.”

And even though he’ll never forget those battles, today he’s more concerned about another fight- to keep the Anzac spirit alive.

“It’s been a bit of a battle to get things organised this year,” he said.

“But I rang around and I got a good response from the Vietnam boys and I’m pleased with what they’ve done for Anzac Day.

“I’d really like to thank them especially Terry Walsh for stepping in.”

IMAGE: LITTLE Alana, 3, and Noah Bernardi, 5 will be among the crowd of hundreds expected at today’s Griffith Anzac Day Service. They are the great-grandchildren of Cecil Tyndall, Griffith sub branch vice-president who is pictured at back with his granddaughter Yvette Robins. Picture: ANTHONY STIPO