A Royal Marine who threw himself over an exploding grenade to shield his comrades from the blast has been recommended for a Victoria Cross, Britain’s highest military honour.

Lance Corporal Matt Croucher, who was on a reconnaissance mission in southern Afghanistan, escaped unscathed except for a nosebleed when his rucksack took the force of the blast.

The three men who were with him suffered only minor cuts and bruises and have recommended to their commanding officer that Lance Corporal Croucher, a Marine reservist from Birmingham, be honoured for his bravery.

Lance Corporal Croucher and his troop were on patrol last month near their base in Sangin, Helmand province, when he stepped into a tripwire that pulled the pin from a boobytrap grenade.

He said: “I thought, I’ve set this bloody thing off and I’m going to do whatever it takes to protect the others. I’m very tight with the three other guys. There have been a few times when they have saved my bacon.

“I knew a grenade like this has a killing circumference of about five metres. So I got down with my back to the grenade and used my body as a shield. It was a case of either having four of us as fatalities or badly wounded, or one.”

Lance Corporal Croucher was flung high into the air and his backpack was blown into small pieces.

“All I could hear was a loud ringing and the faint sound of people shouting, ‘Are you OK? Are you OK?’ Blood was streaming from my nose. It took 30 seconds before I realised I was definitely not dead.”

Although medical staff wanted to evacuate him, Lance Corporal Croucher insisted on finishing his mission. His colleagues passed a citation – which has to be considered by various committees before any awards are given – to their commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Stuart Birrell, soon afterwards.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Defence said: “We’re months away from a decision. But clearly this guy is very brave. And very, very lucky.”

The Victoria Cross was introduced by Queen Victoria in 1856 to reward acts of valour during the Crimean War. Only two have been awarded since 2000. Such is the level of courage required for the medal that it is estimated that the chances of surviving an act worthy of its award are one in ten.

The most recent living person to receive it was Private Johnson Beharry, of the Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment, in 2005 for saving the lives of colleagues under fire on tour in Iraq.

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