Any club that boasts a 14-times world champion among its membership must be doing something right.

And that’s certainly the case at MidGlos Indoor Bowling Club where the iconic Tony Allcock is a life member.

Allcock was the king of bowls in the 80s, 90s and early noughties when he collected major trophies much like Ed Sheeran collects hit singles.

The now 62-year-old was a member of MidGlos when it first opened its doors in Brockworth back in 2002 and although the great man no longer plays at Spinners Road just off Green Street there are plenty at the club who still do.

The club, which boasts 450 members, will come alive in September when the nights start to draw in and the outdoor bowlers flock to their winter home where they will be assured of a warm welcome.

David Crisp, the chairman of the club, is rightly proud of what the club has to offer and is looking forward to the end of summer more than most.

“It’s a great club,” he said. “Like pretty much all clubs we would like more members – particularly younger ones – but we’ve got quite a healthy number.”

Chief among those is Steve Knight who is one of the bowlers flying the flag for the younger brigade.

“He’s in his mid-30s,” said Crisp, “and he’s a very good player.”

So good, in fact, that he qualified to play in a tournament Down Under last year and his is a name that regularly features when the prizes are being presented to tournament winners.

“We’ve got quite a few younger players,” said Crisp. “We must have a dozen players under 25 and they play a different game to the older ones.

“They’re much livelier and fired up. They’re much more aggressive in their play.”

One of the members of this group of youngsters is the wonderfully named Jack Daniels.

There is also a thriving women’s section at MidGlos and with club competitions, county competitions and much more it’s easy to see why so many indoor bowlers don’t mind the onset of winter.

So, why does Crisp like playing bowls so much?

“I like the socialising,” he said. “It’s a relaxing, enjoyable sport. There is a competitive side of things, of course, but generally it’s a great sport.”