A DARLINGTON club is looking for new members ready for the opening of its 2021 season after as the club secretary calls it the “friendliest sport I have ever played”.

Darlington’s Woodland Bowling Club is getting ready for the opening of its 2021 season this weekend by encouraging people to give bowls ago.

The club is set to open Saturday April 17 and offers members a friendly game of carpet bowls and enjoy a drink or two while they do.

Tom Vout, club secretary, said: “We’re opening officially on the April 17 and we’re looking forward to that and we’re looking forward to getting some new members because of over the past few years we’ve lost a lot due to passing onto the other world because, of course, so many of them have died.

“I’ve been in post there for 27 years and 20 years as secretary and nearly all my friends have gone, I was just at a funeral last Friday for one of them and of course you can’t really go to them now unless you’re invited by the family.

“It’s been extremely difficult because of the pandemic because we did actually open on June 15 but not to play our league matches or anything like that, we just had some social bowling and we were very, very careful because we were following the guidelines of the government.

“We also followed the guidelines from Bowls England and Bowls England is, if you like, the headquarters of all the teams like woodland who belong to them.

“The big problem was that at first we only allowed six people to go in there, the gates were locked, they weren’t allowed in the clubhouse and they weren’t allowed in the changing rooms, so we had to get all the equipment out for them.

“Every time they actually did this, they had to sanitise everything after each game, we bought I don’t know how many containers of hand sanitiser, we’ve still got some left fortunately.

“I expect a good turnout this season, because I think people have been inside for so long that they will want to get out and do something outside and bowling of course is a wonderful thing, you can make new friends, you’re in the fresh air and you’re learning a new sport.

“It’s our 75-year anniversary next year, it seemed like yesterday that we were celebrating our 50-year anniversary. We had a wonderful time then.

“We want to try and put on some special events next year, but we haven’t had a committee meeting since last year.

“I think I’ve been involved in about nine or 10 different sports in my life, starting when I was in school, until I retired. I golfed for 28 years, I played rugby county, all kinds of sport and I think bowling is the friendliest sport I have ever played, it really is.

“Everybody gets on with everyone and you get the odd one occasionally but it’s wonderful and any age can get involved, you can bowl when you’re nine and you can bowl when you’re 90.

“A lot of players do play competitively in leagues, but we have a number of bowlers who just play for fun, they do social bowling, they don’t play in teams, they just come any day whenever the green is open."