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Success in football is impossible without a good school.

This summer, we need to let our kids go play and we need to stop worrying about whether or not it's going to ruin their chances of getting into college.

I went to college to play football, not to study it.

It's critical that children spend time before they arrive in school in a warm, attractive and inclusive environment, where they can learn through play, master social skills and prepare for formal schooling.

Play is under attack in our nation's schools - and shrinking recess periods are only part of the problem. Homework is increasing. Cities are building new schools without playgrounds. Safety concerns are prompting bans of tag, soccer, and even running on the schoolyard.

While formal schooling is an important advantage, it is not a guarantee of success nor is its absence a fatal handicap.

I slipped through every school I went to without leaving a trace. I was in no team; I was never a prefect. I was totally mediocre - well, I probably still am - but at places like Summer Fields and Eton, it's all about sport and doing your bit, and I always preferred to watch telly or read a book than run round a field.

We play very fine schools on any given day.

If studies come out and show that playing football is detrimental to your health for the long term, even for the short term, I think that's up to the players then to make the decision about whether they're going to play or not play.

We study play because life is crap. Life is crap, and it's full of pain and suffering, and the only thing that makes it worth living - the only thing that makes it possible to get up in the morning and go on living - is play.