BEN NOWAKDescribed as "an extraordinary soldier and an extraordinary man," by his family, 27-year-old Ben Novak was a Royal Marines Commando whose death in Iraq on 12 November, 2006, came just a week after he had been deployed to the war-torn country.
He was one of four soldiers killed on Basra's Shatt Al Arab River when an "improvised explosive device" hit the patrol boat on which they were travelling.
A keen footballer and supporter of Everton FC, he was generally regarded as one of the fittest men in the Royal Marines.
"Corporal Ben Nowak was an outgoing and gregarious individual who shall be remembered for his keen sense of humour," said the MoD in a statement. "He was well liked by everyone that knew him and he constantly had a twinkle in his eye, symbolic of his enthusiasm and his love for his job."
Corporal Ben Nowak was born in Portsmouth in 1979. After emigrating with his mother to Australia at the age of seven, he returned to the UK eight years later to pursue a career in football and secured trials with Southampton FC.
At 17, he joined the Royal Marines where his love for sport, extraordinary levels of physical fitness and tremendous enthusiasm saw him serve as a Rifleman with 40 Commando Royal Marines for three years.
A further two years were spent with the Fleet Protection Group, most notably deployed to the Northern Arabian Gulf to conduct boardings in support of anti-smuggling operations.
Back with the 40 Commando Royal Marines in 2003, he went on to pass a Junior Command Course and Physical Training Instructors Course at the Commando Training Centre, before being promoted to Corporal.
He then became a Physical Training Instructor, instructing new recruits for two years before finally being drafted back into 45 Commando Group Royal Marines early in 2006.
Trips home to the UK saw him carry on his passion for football by regularly holding fitness sessions for young Everton players. Head coach, Neil Dewsnip, remembered the keen sportsman as a "fantastically enthusiastic and passionate" man who was loved by both staff and scholars.
It was as a volunteer with the 539 Assault Squadron that Corporal Nowak, after a brief period of pre-deployment training, flew into theatre at the beginning of November 2006.
There, in the volatile war-torn country, he proved himself an outstanding Royal Marines Commando, creating a promising career and instilling his tremendous enthusiasm for physical training in his peers.
Tragedy struck on 12 November, 2006, however, when a makeshift bomb hit the patrol boat in which Corporal Novak was travelling, along with Warrant Officer Class 2 Lee Hopkins, Marine Jason Hylton and Staff Sergeant Sharron Elliott.
"To Ben, being a Royal Marine was about more than just pay or a career," said Corporal Nowak's uncle, Michael McEvatt. "He was so proud of what he did and he was so proud of that uniform."
Cousin Daniel McEvatt added: "He once nutmegged Matt Le Tissier. That was something he wouldn't let us forget!"
A minute's silence was later held at Everton's subsequent Premiership game with Bolton Wanderers, described by the club's Head of PR and External Affairs as "a fitting tribute to a brave man and very loyal Evertonian."
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