BUDE Croquet Club has been playing on the Downs, at the old tennis courts off Crooklets Road, since mid summer this year under a licence kindly granted by the Bude-Stratton Town Council, writes joint club secretary, Tony Trump.

That licence is due to expire at the end of October but the council has just granted its extension to the end of March 2018.

Although the club was only founded in early 2016, it already has 16 full members, nearly all of whom play regularly on Tuesday, Friday and Sunday mornings, weather permitting.

Now that the lawns are fit for playing, they can accommodate more players and so, if you might be interested, do please come along on any Saturday morning at 10am where existing members will be delighted to show you what is entailed in playing.

Basically, you are aiming [literally and metaphorically] to get your ball through a hoop – that’s the easy bit given a bit of practice! The other aspect of the game is to prevent your opponent from doing the same — which is where a devious mind and evil intent make the whole game such fun and, certainly, a challenge.

Croquet is no respecter of age, sex, health nor affluence. Everyone plays on a level basis, but with a simple handicapping system so the beginner can play against the most experienced player with each as the possible winner.

It is also considered to be a very suitable sport for older people with the body being symmetrically exercised and the complexities of planning one’s shots and executing them being excellent for keeping the brain alert and challenged.

The club are only too keen to attract new members so come along on a Saturday at 10am and they will lend you all the equipment you will need and give you some basic guidance as to how to play.

To find out more, either call Frances on 01288 355927 or Tony on 01840 230091.