The explosion �?from a mortar round or artillery shell �?badly wounded John, then aged 21, and killed a young commando engineer who was attached to his troop from Yankee Company 45 Commando Group. John, now a Lieutenant Colonel and Commanding Officer of the Royal Marines Reserve unit RMR Merseyside, said:

"I was completely deafened, everything was muffled, and at first I couldn't feel my arm. My first thought was that I had lost my arm and that I wouldn't be able to ride a motorbike again,"

Shrapnel had lodged in his neck �?two fragments are still there today �?and, while he spent four months in hospital, he went on to make a full recovery.

Now, nearly 25 years after his brush with death, John has retraced his steps in the Falkland Islands with two comrades and, in his words, "crossed the finishing line" into Port Stanley.

John, Paul Denning and Andy Shaw were all Lieutenants and troop commanders in Yankee Company - part of the Task Force sent to liberate the Falklands following the Argentinean invasion in April 1982.

Paul, then also aged 21, is now a full Colonel and Commanding Officer, Fleet Protection Group Royal Marines at HM Naval Base Clyde. He too failed to complete the yomp after being shot in the leg. Andy Shaw, then aged 26, has since left the Royal Marines and now lives in Spain. He was the only one to make it to Port Stanley in 1982.

In the hours before they finally confronted the enemy the three friends had promised themselves a celebratory pint in the capital. But both John and Paul were injured on the same evening, 12 June 1982, on Two Sisters Mountain - part of the high ground which dominates Port Stanley. Within 48 hours the Argentineans had surrendered to British forces.

The three men were firm friends before the Falklands conflict and wanted to return to the islands to "complete unfinished business", according to John.

The trio were able to renew friendships they made nearly a quarter of a century ago and stage presentations about the Royal Marines and the Falklands campaign itself for the islanders and their children, as well as visiting memorials on the islands. They have also raised around £5,000 for the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Children's Fund.

"There was a little bit of emotion when we went back, and part of the reason for going was to clear away some of that emotion. There were plenty of moments of quiet reflection," said John.

"When we reached the point where Paul and I were injured we stopped to reflect for a few minutes. We wanted to honour the memories of those colleagues who weren't lucky enough to return to their families.

"The locals were brilliant with us �?very hospitable and keen to share their memories. It was very humbling. We made a point of stopping to chat to them to see if their recollection of events matched ours.

"When we finally arrived in Port Stanley the welcome we received was incredible. It seemed as though half the town had turned out to greet us. And we did, finally, manage to drink that pint we'd promised ourselves."

The southern summer made conditions more favourable this time round than they had been in the southern winter nearly 25 years ago. But there were some telling reminders of the three men's experiences a quarter century earlier.

"We were often struck by how familiar certain places appeared, and there was even plenty of evidence of the war �?ammunition cases and other bits and pieces. We even discovered a helmet at one point," said John.

The notoriously arduous journey from the West coast of East Falkand across the island to Port Stanley in 1982 introduced the word 'yomp' into common speech, but 45 Commando was the only unit to make the whole journey on foot.

"There was the odd engagement with the enemy but the hardest part was carrying up to 120 pounds (54 kg) of kit across very windswept and inhospitable ground," said John.

"The weight of our equipment and the terrain were terrible. We did come across a couple of settlements but for the most part we had to make do with sheep shelters or the trenches we dug on route.

"I actually felt horrendously guilty at the time that I had been forced to leave my blokes because I was injured. I really felt I had let them down. I'm glad I had the chance to finish what I started."