Lyndon Rowland obituary

Lyndon Rowland was a keen sports enthusiast, as a player and spectator Photograph: from family/Unknown

My uncle, Lyndon Rowland, who has died aged 88, was a Korean war veteran and keen sportsman.

Lyn was born in Newport, Gwent, to Violet (nee Smith) and George Rowland. He was the youngest of 12 children, only seven of whom survived to adulthood, among them my father, Roy. They grew up above the family fish and chip shop on Corporation Road. Lyn’s duties included peeling potatoes before school each morning and collecting fresh fish from Newport railway station. He would cycle home with pallets of hake and plaice balanced on his handlebars.

Sport was his passion. He was an opening batsman for Newport and district cricket team, and he played for Corporation Road FC. For a while he thought he might go professional, and had a trial with Southampton FC. But on leaving St Andrew’s elementary school in 1946, Lyndon became an apprentice coachbuilder with Newport Transport.

Lyndon Rowland in army uniform during his Korean war service Photograph: None

When he finished his apprenticeship, Lyn was called up for national service in the army. It was 1951, and he was sent to fight in Korea. The following year, as part of the Duke of Wellington’s Regiment, he was dispatched to defend the Hook, a strategic, crescent-shaped ridge held by the United Nations.

The winter was harsh, and combatants would freeze to the ground in their trenches. Lyn saw intense fighting, with relentless shelling and Chinese forces overrunning his position several times. There were heavy losses on both sides.

Lyn’s journey home involved a detour via Gibraltar, where he was selected for a small guard of honour to escort the newly crowned Queen Elizabeth II on a visit.

Back in Wales, Lyn resumed his romance with his teenage sweetheart, Jean Partridge. He would cycle home from youth club, and again his handlebars were useful, this time as a passenger seat for Jean. They married in 1954, bought a plot of land in Caerleon and built their own home.

Lyn had a long career with Newport Transport, graduating from the shop floor to management and retiring in 1986. He enjoyed horse racing as a spectator, and was a member of Llanwern golf club for 50 years. He bore a striking resemblance to the actor Leslie Nielsen, which led to some amusing incidents.

Lyndon is survived by Jean, and their daughter, Catherine, and son, Nick.