A LONG running bowls club has put out a plea for more members, with the club possibly being unable to survive without them.

Beaminster Short Mat Bowls Club needs more members of else it will be at risk of having to close down.

The club has been running for more than 20 years and meets in the Beaminster Public Hall every Thursday with play starting from 7pm.

The club currently has 12 members but only around six to eight regularly turn up to participate.

Club chairman Geoff Neal is worried what might become of the club if they are unable to recruit new members.

He said: “I’ve been putting things on Facebook for months and get a very limited response. I don't think the pandemic has helped either as we are an ageing group of people and not everyone has returned following the lockdowns.

"I’m worried we might have to close down which would be a great shame for the members we do have so we’re very keen to recruit new members.

"We have to lay out the rather large mats before each game and a lot of us are simply not able to lift them and put them into place.

"With that in mind we're looking for fitter members if possible. We are a sociable bunch and would welcome any new members with open arms."

Short mat bowls is a modern version of bowls played indoors on an artificial mat six foot wide and 40 to 45 foot long, a much shorter length than traditional outdoor lawn or indoor bowls.

Mr Neal is requesting that anyone keen to join the club or who would like to give it a try comes to a session at the public hall on Thursday evenings. The group has spare equipment for potential members to borrow or try out and members are happy to explain how the game works to anyone unsure.