OVER the last few weeks, we have been asking our local sports clubs to nominate their ‘club heroes’.

Some have served their community as NHS staff or keeping essential services running; others have been ‘unsung heroes’ at their club, showing great dedication over many years.

They don’t come any more long-serving than Burnham-on-Sea Hockey Club’s nomination: Louise Peace, who rarely misses a training session or match.

That’s despite her being in her sixties now; she’s been with the club since the start and does not look like giving up any time soon.

The club had only just been set up when Louise saw an advert and decided to give it a go, one weekend in 1983.

“I had always wanted to do something, but I hadn’t found something that suited me,” she told the Weekly News.

“The club was started by a few people who had partners who played for the rugby club at the BASC [Burnham Association of Sports Clubs] ground.

“It was very sociable there; my husband used to play football, and people would stay on after the games at BASC.

“We used to play hockey on grass, which was hopeless really, our only protection was shinpads, and no-one thought to bring a drink of water to games.

“Now we play on the astroturf at King Alfred School.”

In her time at the club, Louise has served in a variety of roles: chairman, treasurer, captain and vice-captain.

And while she has also tried her hand at rounders and running - undertaking the challenge of the London Marathon a couple of times - hockey has remained her sport of choice.

“I’m a bit surprised that I want to keep going,” she said.

“It’s the friendship - there’s a really nice set of people at the club, very sociable - and it’s nice to have a focus on weekly training and matches.”

Has this year’s lockdown and cancellation of sporting activities made her appreciate the club even more?

“Exactly that. It’s not until you can’t do something that you realise how much you want it.

“Sometimes you might struggle to get yourself up for going to training, but now everyone would give their right arm just to go to a training session again.

“At the moment we’re just having to wait until we can resume more structured training.”

The club is looking for people interested in playing, coaching and umpiring for next season.

For more information on getting involved in the club, you can get in contact via this Facebook group.