In this episode of the Defence Connect Podcast, senior journalist Robert Dougherty is joined by returning guest Heston Russell – a public speaker, author and former Australian Special Forces officer – to discuss the 2025 Veteran Games and the recent grand finals held on the Gold Coast (11 and 12 October).

Russell has previously served in 2nd Commando Regiment as a commando platoon commander, was deployed to four combat operational deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq, served in Iraq as a Special Operations joint lead planner within the Special Operations Joint Task Force and completed a year-long exchange within the United States Special Operations Command.

He holds a bachelor of arts from UNSW Sydney, majoring in history and Indonesian.

The pair discuss a range of issues, including:

• The finale of the 2025 Veteran Games Grand Finals in Queensland, course obstacles and the triumph of winning team Brisbane Veterans Rugby League Football Club.
• The newly signed defence agreement between Australia and Papua New Guinea, the possibility of up to 10,000 Papua New Guineans serving with the Australian Defence Force and the formation of the new Papua New Guinea Chiefs professional rugby team.
• The challenges in Australian Defence Force recruitment and what it takes for veterans to recommend their own journey as a career path to young people.
• Russell's thoughts about the "military fitness standards" speech delivered by US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth to US generals and flag officers at Quantico in Virginia in September.
• The new era of drone warfare and Russell's personal experiences facing early drone and drone-dropped explosives during deployment in the Middle East.

They round out the podcast discussing the evolution of politics in Australia and potential for new political leadership from first responders and the veteran community.

Enjoy the podcast, The Defence Connect team