A Black Country hero soldier whose baby boy was born while he was fighting in Afghanistan delayed his paternity leave so he would not let down his men.

Sergeant Jonathan Werrett, from Walsall, who raced across the desert to help a friend who had captured one of the Taliban’s top bomb-making experts, became a new dad just over a week ago and now carries a picture of his child tucked in his body armour.

The 31-year-old said: “It’s a little bit selfish but I don’t want to leave my platoon. It’s pretty difficult.

“If anything happened and I wasn’t here, I would feel responsible.

“I think every commander feels the same way.”

As reported in the Express & Star, Sgt Werrett was hailed a hero after racing two kilometres  to help a fellow soldier who had captured a bomb-making expert. And it has now been revealed that unknown to them, Sgt Werrett and three of his comrades were running through a minefield, left over from the war with Russia.

The platoon sergeant with the Mercian Regiment is stationed at Durai Junction, outside Gereshk, where British soldiers have been pushing into Taliban heartlands.

Sgt Werrett’s wife Bertha, 32, a nurse, gave birth to a baby boy, Marley, weighing 9lb 11oz on April 9.

He will get to see the child for the first time on his two-week break in the middle of the tour but he will not take his two weeks’ paternity leave until he finishes his six-month stint in August.

Details also emerged today of how another solider from Walsall drew on his survival training when tasked with securing an area where Isaf had dropped a 500lb bomb, which had apparently failed to go off.

Lance Corporal Dan Roberts, 23, was with a group of soldiers who took up a position in another compound but were without rations.

He said: “We had to fend for ourselves. During survival training we learned how to cook and kill pigeons.

“We bought a turkey from a local so I put my training into practice. It was like a scene out of Rocky where he’s trying to chase a chicken around a playground. We finally caught it, and it did taste quite good.”

He managed to feed 15 men with the bird.