FROM Carrington to Cobham and all of the other grounds in between, training would have been pretty dangerous over the last week.

Of course players need to be well wrapped up.

Papa Bouba Diop at Portsmouth is nicknamed 'The Wardrobe' and I always thought it was because he is a big guy but no, it is in fact because in the winter he goes out to train in multiple layers of clothes with two or three hats and two sets of gloves.

Now let me qualify what I mean by dangerous.

Firstly, the pitches. No training ground that I am aware of has undersoil heating which means on a bitterly cold day, even if the pitches have been covered overnight, the surface is still rock hard.

Just move training indoors I hear you say.

Well, firstly not all clubs have indoor facilities and secondly, players are not keen on playing practice matches on the artificial surfaces.

Senior players especially don't like the fact that there is no give in the surface when a tackle is made, therefore increasing the risk of knee and ankle ligament damage.

So indoors is only good for running. In fact, at his Friday press conference, Sir Alex Ferguson said that Wayne Rooney and Patrice Evra had their return from injury delayed by the inclement weather.

Child

Fitness is not an issue half-way through a season anyway with the amount of games taking place. You will find more fat on a butcher's pencil.

Secondly, snowfall and training grounds bring out the child in each and every player. Yes, of course there is no harm in a snowball fight or a bit of sledging.

But what if a team-mate steals the keys to your Bentley GT convertible and 'the pranksters' drop the roof down and fill it with snow.

Or maybe that newly-bought pair of $3,000 Prada shoes that 'disappear' to be conveniently buried in the snow only to be discovered when it melts a few days later.

Oh, and one final thing, God help you if you are a member of the club staff.

Snowfall is officially the start of the hunting season and a deer with a bullseye painted on its side is less of a target than you.

Believe me, I know and still have the scars to prove it!

• The writer is a presenter with the Football Channel