A SUBBUTEO club is bringing people back together after the pandemic... one flick at a time.

Worthing Fivestar TFC is a Subbuteo club that has been playing for 40 years and is looking for people to join up as they relaunch now lockdown restrictions have loosened.

The game Subbuteo is a tabletop version of football in which players use their fingers to flick miniature figures of footballers at the ball in order to strike it towards the goal.

The club in Worthing struggled to run during the pandemic due to how close people are to one another while they play.

However, due to the lockdown, there has been a resurgence of players who have found old sets while spending more time at homes.

Alan Lee, the vice-chairman of the English Subbuteo Association and member of Worthing Fivestar TFC, said: "One of the things that we are pushing with the English Subbuteo Association is the social aspect of the game.

"For us the social part of the game, the popularity of the game declined as the product did and with the emergence of games consoles.

"I am a big believer of people healing people, and that is something we are really trying to push at the club, now we have relaunched."

The Argus: Worthing Fivestar TFC members Nigel Pestelle, Peter Upton, Steve Taylor, Paul Woodhouse, Brian Barnes and Dave CroucherWorthing Fivestar TFC members Nigel Pestelle, Peter Upton, Steve Taylor, Paul Woodhouse, Brian Barnes and Dave Croucher

The English Subbuteo Association has started five new clubs in the last year as demand has risen for the retro game.

Alan, 51, who started playing in the early 1980s, usually as Chelsea or Italy, said: "The nostalgia has always been there, that isolated time everyone has helped it.

"People going into their loft spaces and finding old sets and panini stickers has really helped bring the sport back.

"I played regularly until I was 16 or 17 when I started doing other things. Since I got back into the sport three years ago, I love it.

"I drive two hours from Kent to take part at the Worthing club."

Another reason Alan wants collectors who play the game by themselves to join the club is the chance to meet Peter Upton, who he has described as a bible of Subbuteo knowledge.

Peter Upton, who is also a member of the Worthing Fivestar TFC and is well known in the Subbuteo community for his knowledge of the product and sport.

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