On 18th August 2026, a new Platoon Sergeant for the second platoon was selected, following MSG Fitzgerald's moving up to the Company First Sergeant position. After several interviews, SSG Marsh was considered to be the best candidate for this position.

Staff Sergeant Marsh joined on 2nd July 2024, starting as a Fireteam Member in the First Platoon, Fourth Squad "Phoenix". Spending almost a year as fire team member, Matthew Marsh showed initiative, dedication, integrity, leadership skills and loyalty as a simple fire team member. He moves up to Second Squad "Ghosts" as a Fire Team Leader, 7-8 months later becomming the Squad Leader of the same squad. Beeing one of the most resilient Squad Leaders in the platoon and desiring to choose a different path from infantry, Staff Sergeant Marsh reforges his career path and joins Second Platoon as Assistant Squad Leader on February 26th 2026, in Second Squad. A month after he becomes the Squad Leader of the same squad.

On DMOS side, SSG Marsh becomes within short time after joining, a member of PAO. Already wanting to bring his part to the unit, this soldier spends several months in there until he manages to join Force Improvement Group as a Range Safety Officer. In there he brings excellence to the shop, moving to Drill Instructor, Drill Sergeant and finally Senior Drill Sergeant, very often participating at courses and schools as an instructor in the same courses he went trough as a simple student.

Tell us a little about yourself

I'm just a regular dude trying to have fun on the weekend while also trying to make sure everyone in my platoon also has a good time. Aside from unit stuff, I study full time and I generally spend my free time playing games, my guitar and watching videos, or working out/being outside.

How does it feel to switch from Squad Leader to Platoon Sergeant duties and tasks?

It's definitely a really different approach. As a Squad Leader, my primary focus was on the well-being of my squad and making sure they were in top-notch condition and ready to perform at all times. As the PSG, I'm now responsible for taking care of the platoon as a whole and supporting the SLs so they can do their jobs without any issues. It's also a different feeling going from executing plans to actually coming up with our next courses of action and giving taskings to the SLs. It's really interesting, and also really exciting.

How do you feel about being a Platoon Sergeant at the moment?

I'm actually really excited about it. There's definitely a sense of responsibility that comes with the position, but I'm really looking forward to what we can accomplish as a platoon. I've been working with these people for a while now, and I know how good and dedicated they are, so the chance to contribute to the platoon at a higher level is something I'm very proud of.

What was driving you towards this position?

I think what generally led me here was the desire to have a bigger impact on my platoon and the people around me. I really enjoyed being an SL, but the prospect of moving up and actually taking care of not only my old squad, but the entire platoon, just appealed to me on a different level. I wanted to be able to help the people around me grow, support the other NCOs, and ultimately make the platoon a place where people can perform well while still having a good time.

What are your plans for the Platoon, as a Platoon Sergeant?

One of my biggest priorities is developing our Squad Leaders and junior NCOs so that we have strong leadership throughout the platoon. I also want to maintain strong squad readiness by making sure people are properly trained, understand their roles, and that we're identifying problems before they become larger issues. Last but not least, I want to maintain a culture where people are held to a high standard while still genuinely enjoying being here. At the end of the day, this is a milsim community, and people are here because they want to have fun. I want our platoon to be professional and effective without losing that.