A social club set up after the Second World War is being sold after going into administration with debts of almost £200,000.

Lancing Naval Old Comrades Club started life in a corrugated iron Nissen hut brought from the New Forest by horse and cart and placed on specially donated land in Tower Road, Lancing.

It was later replaced by a larger hut, with the present premises being built in the early Seventies.

At its height, the club, which started as a place for people with connections with the Royal and Merchant Navy to meet, had almost 200 paid-up members Today the buildings are closed, with people who live nearby resigned to the prospect of the club being demolished for flats.

Insolvency practitioner Ian Vickers, from Worthing, was granted an administration order at Brighton County Court last month and will now deal with creditors, which include the finance company with a £125,000 mortgage on the premises.

A further sum of about £75,000 is owed to other creditors.

Mr Vickers said: "We have not got a final figure, but we anticipate all creditors will be paid."

The final nail in the coffin of the club follows a turbulent 18 months.

Chairman Roger Munday died in March 2004, followed by barman Gary Corrigan, who was only 40, just before Christmas.

The club lost its soul and the number of activities began to dwindle.

Today a faded notice remains on the door of the club, close to Lancing railway station, announcing its closure.

It says: "This decision has been reached after long and heartfelt discussions and considering independent professional advice."

The two-storey building including bar, function rooms and offices, is now up for sale.

Roger Munday's son Neil, 38, said: "It was a good club but it did not get the passing trade. At the end we had 115 members but only 25 regularly used it. Things went downhill after my father and then Gary died."

Roger's wife, Diane, 58, added: "We had no alternative but to put the club into administration.

Someone did say they wanted to buy it and run it as a club but that never materialised.

"A mortgage was taken out and for a time we were up to date with it but when takings declined we could not keep up with payments."

Sean Munnery, 30, who lives next door to the club said: "We all expect the site to be developed into a block of flats."