David, try again, don't let a bad experience put you off. We started our club ten years ago and three of us met to get it started, one letter to the local press, brought a bout twenty people to a pub to discuss what to do, and we ended up with ten members and grew to around the mid thirties each club night.
Get the basis of your committee onside first, have some support, much better than going it alone, try again, clubs have many things to offer that the internet cannot
Ron