Doctors have told me if I kick another football I'll die

Andy Scott knows he should be DEAD – only a sixth sense prevented him from suffering a fatal heart attack on the pitch. 

He has now been forced to quit football after doctors warned any physical exercise could KILL HIM. 

Two years ago, Manchester City star Marc-Vivien Foe died on the pitch while playing for Cameroon in the Confederations Cup in France. 

Now former Leyton Orient star Scott wants to save others from becoming victims of heart condition that preys on sports stars. 

Scott, 32, said: “A specialist told me I had been playing Russian roulette with my life for 13 years and I had reached the point where there were five bullets in the gun. 

“One minute you’re running around, the next you’re dead. 

“Sportsmen are at much higher risk of dying from this illness because of the strain they put on their heart.” 

The condition – hypertrophic cardiomyopathy – restricts the efficient pumping of blood around the body due to a thickening of the heart muscle from inside. 

It claimed the life of former Wales boss Terry Yorath’s 15-year-old son Daniel and York’s David Longhurst, who died on the pitch aged 25. 

“The PFA and FA must insist every player has an ECG, otherwise we could witness another horrific death on the pitch. 

“I was very lucky because I had some warning signs.  My legs felt heavy and I was struggling to finish games.  I thought it might be flu but against Cheltenham I could hardly breathe, my head was banging, and at half-time I could barely move. 

“I knew there was something wrong.  I had shooting pains all over.  The club doctor detected a heart murmur and sent me to see a specialist. 

“He told me: “If you don’t hang up your boots you could drop dead the next time you kick a ball.” 

“I freeze when I look back – had I stayed on the field I could ended up like Foe.  “But I’m alive and NOW I can make sure my son Lewis, who is seven, doesn’t dice with death like I did.”

Find out more about Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy