THE mother of a second Wirral soldier killed in Afghanistan has paid tribute to her 'brilliant' son.

Trooper Phillip Lawrence from The Light Dragoons died in an explosion on Monday whilst travelling in a Scimitar armoured vehicle.

The Birkenhead-born former Ridgeway High School pupil was part of a patrol in Lashkar Gah district, Helmand province, helping ensure the security of an area earlier cleared as part of Operation Panchai Palang.

The father-of-one had volunteered to step in to drive for another Troop to fill a temporary manning gap when his vehicle was hit by an explosion, mortally wounding him.

Known to his colleagues as 'Lenny' he leaves four brothers Christopher, Liam, Ryan and Lewis, his wife Amy and daughter Jessica.

His mother Gaynor, 42, said: "Although we were mum and son, we were also best mates. We were a team and we all adored him. He loved his mum, his brothers, his wife and his little baby girl.

"He was the man of the house - both for his wife and daughter and for our house - and was always around if me or his brothers needed him or had a problem.

"He was a loving, caring person who made friends wherever he went.

"He was also a great practical joker and didn’t take life very seriously. Phil had always wanted to be in the Army. He went into the careers office in Birkenhead when he was 16. They said he would make a fantastic soldier, but to come back when he was 18 and more 'streetwise'.

"On his 18th birthday, he went back into the office, wearing a big 18 badge, and told them he'd come back to sign up.

"He never looked back and loved being in the Army. He stepped up to the mark and I am incredibly proud of him for doing that.

"When he came home from Afghanistan after his first tour, I put a big banner up saying 'welcome home mummy's little soldier' – he wasn't embarrassed by that. He loved it.

"We backed him all the way. Although it's very hard for us to come to terms with this, we have taken great comfort from all the messages of support we’ve received from our family and friends."

He enlisted in the army in July 2005. After completing recruit training in January 2006 he conducted his Royal Armoured Corps training in Bovington before joining The Light Dragoons.

Joining C Squadron from the outset, he was deployed almost immediately on his first tour of Afghanistan in late 2006, where he quickly learnt his trade in the most demanding conditions. He was a talented, reliable and dedicated soldier.

Tpr Lawrence deployed to Afghanistan this year as part of Emsdorf Troop, a Fire Support Group attached to A Company 2 Mercian regiment.

For the first three months of the tour he had operated on foot and in Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance in Garmsir, before the battle group deployed to the Lashkar Gah district.

Lieutenant Colonel Gus Fair, Commanding officer The Light Dragoons, said: "Tpr Lawrence was one of the characters that make a family Regiment such as The Light Dragoons so special.

"Lenny's generous nature, inability to bear a grudge and sheer enjoyment of day to day life endeared him to us all. Everyone counted him amongst their friends, and his loss will hit the Regiment especially hard.

"He soldiered with great heart, shown both in the boxing ring and on the battlefield.

"Utterly selfless, he was mortified if he ever made a mistake, and it was impossible not to forgive him immediately as you could see just how much he cared.

"Lenny was devoted to his family, and the pride he took in his wife and daughter shone from him. It fills me with enormous sadness that Jessica, his baby daughter, will not grow up to know her brilliant father, and our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Amy and his mother Gaynor as they grieve this tragic loss."

Tpr Larwence is the second Wirral soldier to die on duty in Afghanistan within the last week.

Guardsman Christopher King of the 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards was killed in an explosion during an operation in Helmand Province last Wednesday.

The body of the 20 year-old, originally from Birkenhead, was repatriated to RAF Lyneham in Wiltshire yesterday.