Visitors to the Centre of Excellence at the County Ground in Taunton recently may well have been surprised to have been greeted by a friendly female face.

The friendly face belongs to Louise Gainsborough who has just completed a two weeks work experience placement at the Cricketing Centre in Taunton.

Seventeen year old Louise who lives at Dunwear, is in the second year of a B Tec in Sports Science course which she is studying at Bridgwater College, which in turn she hopes will lead onto an H.N.D. in Sports Science.

Louise told me: "I started to play cricket about three years ago after watching a game on the television. I became interested enough to attend a course here at Taunton, and now I play regularly in the summer for Bath Ladies and Somerset Wanderers."

She continued: " I wanted to find out exactly how the Centre works so I arranged to do my two weeks works experience here. Whilst I have been here I have been carrying out a facility strategy survey for the Somerset Cricket Development Officer Andrew Moulding. Everybody has been very helpful and I have thoroughly enjoyed my time here."

Seam bowler Louise enjoyed success in 2002 and did well enough on the field to make it through to the Somerset trials in her first full season with the Bath club.

What were her cricketing ambitions I asked. She told me: "I want to play for Somerset and then I guess like everybody else I want to play cricket for England."

Louise is not just playing cricket she is also becoming involved in coaching the game and using it to help her gain her Duke of Edinburgh Award.

She continued: "I passed my Level One Coaching course here earlier in the year and now I help out at the Centre of Excellence coaching on a Saturday morning. I 'm also using my cricket to help me gain my Duke of Edinburgh's Award. I have completed the playing and coaching part and still have to complete the residential and expedition sections."

Andrew Moulding told me: "Somerset have always had a policy of encouraging youngsters to do work experience here at the ground and we have been delighted to have been able to help Louise. She is mad keen on the game so this has been an ideal placement for her."

© SOMERSET