There was standing room only as the commemoration spilled into neighbouring backyards so those who wanted to pay their respects could attend the dawn service.

Nowra RSL secretary Rick Meehan said it was the biggest ceremony he had seen in his 10 years at the Greenwell Point dawn service.

“This was huge. We estimate there had to be 10,000 people here,” he said.

“It was brilliant to see. And you couldn’t ask for a better setting for this day on the centenary of Anzac.”

At one stage traffic was backed up five kilometres to Mayfield Road at Brundee as people tried to make their way to the seaside village.

The commemorations began with the solemn march along Greenwell Point Road, the tinkling of medals in the darkness the only sound.

As the march approached Anzac Park there was spasmodic applause which intensified as the many veterans and serving military personnel finally made their way into the venue.

Mother Nature served up a beautiful balmy morning and later a stunning sunrise over Orient Point just as The Last Post and Reveille were played.

Commanding officer of the Army Parachute Training School at Nowra Hill Lieutenant Colonel Robert Calhoun gave the keynote address, paying tribute to the many locals who served and died not only in World War I but all the conflicts Australia has taken part in.

He reflected on why Anzac still resonates, what the legacy represents, not just for veterans, but for all.

“Today we mark the 100th anniversary of the landings at Anzac Cove. This year also marks the 50th anniversary of the commitment of combat troops to Vietnam,” Lt Col Calhoun said.

“First, some context – I want to give you a sense of what was going on around here 101 years ago. 

“Pyree had entered the 1913-14 first grade cricket competition as defending champions. Burrier ended the 1914 summer by winning it. The inaugural South Coast Rugby League Competition was formed. The local paper carried stories ranging from the proposed bill to surrender land around Jervis Bay for the establishment of the Naval College to the emergence of a new model oil engine for farms.

“In the months and years that followed, 329 local men from this community enlisted along with three physicians and three nurses. Seven were awarded Military Medals and two the Military Cross. Seventy never returned. 

“In the century since, Australia endured a depression, the Second World War, the dropping of the atomic bomb, the Korean War, the Malayan emergency, the Vietnam War, instability and conflict in Cambodia, Somalia, Rwanda and East Timor and combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. 

“It speaks to the strength of the commitment to remember and reflect that this tradition of solemn commemoration has lived on.  

“In World War I, 332,000 Australians served, over 60,000 paid the ultimate sacrifice and as ever the wounded outnumbered the dead – some 155,000.

“The impact of the losses in far off places like Gallipoli, Villers Bretonneux, Pozieres and Beersheba never left this country.  

“There was not a family, community or sporting club untouched by the war.  Everyone in this community had a connection. The Peppers, the Bices, the Braithwaites, the Dudgeons, the Borrowdales, the McLeans, the Watts, Bryces, the O’Briens and the Thomsons.  

“The stories are unique and personal but they are not uncommon. The defining difference is scale and anonymity.

“Reviewing the personal stories of so many of these lads you appreciate the sense of community.”

He said more recently Australia had lost 41 in Afghanistan, and over 261 wounded among the latest generation of veterans.  

He also mentioned the 10th anniversary of the crash of Sea King helicopter Shark 02, commemorated earlier this month, which crashed while supporting a humanitarian support mission in Indonesia. 

Nine Australians were killed, including four crew members who were part of this community – Lieutenant Paul Kimlin, Lieutenant Jonathan King, Lieutenant Mathew Goodall and Leading Seaman Aircrewman Scott Bennet.