A PREMIER league winner has joined forces with a leading Hampshire heart charity - raising £3,500 for the region’s cardiac patients.

Tony Gale, who won the league with Blackburn, played for Crystal Palace, Fulham and West Ham and is now a Sky Sports pundit, joined Wessex Heartbeat to play a socially distanced match with the well-known faces of some top local businesses.

Those teeing off alongside Tony at Romsey Golf Club included Steve Brookwell from AFC Totton, Mark Lane from Donna Italia Pizza and Danny Imray from DNA Insurance.

Proceeds from the event, along with money raised from an exciting post-match raffle, will be put towards helping the heart charity’s ongoing projects, as well as towards its recently reopened Heartbeat House – a home away from home for cardiac patients and their families.

Wessex Heartbeat CEO John Munro said: “Wessex Heartbeat’s golf days are a key highlight in the calendar, but with the ongoing pandemic we have had to scale down our events, making fundraising all the more difficult. However, the support from the Romsey Golf Day has been phenomenal and we are over the moon at how much money was raised.

“I would like to thank all that were involved in making the day go ahead without a hitch – particularly our golfers who took the time out of their busy schedules to support our wonderful charity.”

AFC Totton’s Steve Brookwell led the winning team to golfing victory and was presented with the winning prizes by John.

The charity's annual golf day at Remedy Oak Golf Club in Verwood will now be held on May 4, 2021.

To find out more about the charity, visit heartbeat.co.uk