Young and magnificent

THE BRITISH sailors simply stole the show. When 12 of HMS Southampton's youngest crew members acted as the guard at a wreath-laying service in Novorossiysk this month they made a Russian admiral gasp in, well, admiration.

Members of the Russian navy had stomped immaculately into the square, goose-stepping with their heads held high.

But then came the matelots, marching crisply with their bayonets fixed - and exuding just the slightest whiff of arrogance.

They were magnificent.

"Very young and very impressive," declared Admiral Rogatin, who is in charge of Russia's Black Sea fleet.

For HMS Southampton's commanding officer, Commander Gary Doyle, it was a proud moment.

"They have done so well. They were fantastic," he said.

Southampton's adopted warship received a warm welcome in Novorossiysk.

On her arrival a local lady, in historic dress, presented Cdr Doyle with bread and salt in a tradition indicating friendship.

At a press conference several days later Russian journalists praised HMS Southampton's crew, saying they were the best-behaved sailors to visit the Black Sea port.

"Was this a national characteristic of the British when abroad?" they asked, apparently oblivious to the reputation of some of our football fans.

The most heart-warming part of the ship's stay was when 20 sailors gave up their free time to visit the Yellow Submarine Club, a cultural and language centre where Russian children learn English.

Pupils entertained them with ballet, poetry, nursery rhymes and, naturally, by singing that Beatles classic Yellow Submarine.

"They are very short of resources but their performance was overwhelming. The youngest child involved was five," said Lieutenant John Cromie.

"We gave them small gifts, sweets and second-hand books. Most of the children in this area rarely get chocolate."

As a result of the visit there are now tentative plans to establish a pen-friend system between the centre and Wellow Primary School, near Romsey.

Russia no longer has a communist regime, but little seems to have changed from the oppressive days of the Cold War.

Unlike other foreign ports, HMS Southampton's sailors had to wear their uniforms when they went ashore and the FSB (the former KGB) closely monitored the visit.

While the Russian navy and the majority of the residents of Novorossiysk could not have been more welcoming it soon became apparent that one sector of the community resented their presence.

The matelots were repeatedly taunted by groups of youths, who dragged several sailors walking alone into alleyways and mugged them.

One crew member was bundled into the back of a car, taken to the outskirts of the city, robbed and then beaten up.

Left dazed at the side of the road the sailor was picked up by a passer-by and returned to the ship.

The most serious incident occurred when a large group of Russian youths surrounded a nightclub containing 50 members of the ship's company, ready to confront them as they left.

Realising they were in a tight spot, the crew gathered everyone from the ship together into a tight group, putting the youngest in the centre.

They then calmly walked from the building, through the amassed angry throng, returning to the ship unharmed.

"The Russians had made us very welcome. However the crew had a lot of provocation from youths. In the face of this, they behaved impeccably," said Cdr Doyle

"They formed a group with the younger kids in the centre and came back to the ship as one.

"They showed a pride in their country, pride in their ship and a pride in the Royal Navy. I was very impressed."

From Novorossiysk the ship went to Odessa, where she sat at the bottom of the famous Potemkin Steps, floodlit at night.

While she was there HMS Southampton, built by Vosper Thornycroft in Woolston, celebrated her 21st birthday.

Though she may be a bit of an old lady of the seas now, she can still pack a punch with her weapons and whizz through the waves at considerable speed.

The destroyer showed this when she went on to Romania and exercised with part of the country's navy.

HMS Southampton trained with Admiral Sebastian, teaching the 90m corvette how to take on fuel while at sea.

This tricky and dangerous manoeuvre, pioneered by the British navy, involves the warship swooping to the side of a tanker at speed to avoid collision.

Put a propeller wrong and you slew into the side of the other vessel.

During the Cold War naval folklore tells how Russian warships would loiter on the horizon, watching closely to see if they could learn how the British accomplished the feat.

Yet, when they tried it themselves, the results were normally less than successful.

"These navies want to emulate the Royal Navy. They couldn't believe how much time we spend at sea compared with them," said Cdr Doyle.

"The Romanians were lovely people, so keen to be members of the EU - but you could see the effects of communism."

The results of years of communist rule were again clearly visible at their next port of call, Varna in Bulgaria.

Here the horizon was filled with endless tower blocks, unemployment stood at 20 per cent and wolves strolled the streets.

Again HMS Southampton's guard was on show at the Remembrance Sunday memorial service in the centre of a city where the mafia has a strong base and many young adults leave to seek a new life in another country.

It's all very different from Hampshire, where many of the sailors are based near the ship's home port of Portsmouth.

And, wherever she travels, the thoughts of those on HMS Southampton are never far away from home.

During this current deployment two new links with the county have been established.

As well as the pen-friend scheme between the Yellow Submarine Club and Wellow Primary School, the ship has also learnt how Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire Mrs Mary Fagan is investigating strengthening the links between the ship and the county, with a view to making her Hampshire's official warship.

The destroyer's status may change but one thing is sure. She currently carries some of the finest examples of the high-calibre youngsters the navy can offer.