Wanderers' legend Frank Worthington looks back with fondness on his days as a football playboy in a television documentary to be screened tonight.

The striker is one of many past and present players who appear on ITV's Hitting The Bar, a programme which turns the spotlight on footballers and booze

The documentary starts in the champagne-soaked '70s, depicting a time when the likes of George Best and Rodney Marsh enjoyed a busy social life of booze and women -- and looking at the effect it had on their lives.

Frank established himself as a fans' favourite when he played for Bolton between September, 1977, and October, 1979. The programme opens with footage of him talking to guests at a recenty sportsmen's dinner.

He says: "I had a marvellous time in football, played against many great players and lived life to the full. People say I've squandered fortunes -- booze, gambling and women. Well, as my old mate Stan Bowles said, it's a lot better than wasting it."

Rather than regretting his boozing, Worthington looks back on his days of drinking and women with fondness.

He says: "The Seventies were absolutely the best time for any football player, not just for football, but for the life and for the music industry, the things that were going on around us. They were absolutely fantastic." Worthington became a Bolton legend after scoring four goals against Manchester United when the Wanderers completed a league double over their rivals in the 1978-79 season.

During Hitting the Bar, to be shown on ITV1 at 9.45pm tonight, former soccer stars reveal the extent of their booze binges and talk frankly about how excessive drinking affected their lives.

The documentary asks whether football is heading for a hangover unless it faces up to the problems of its drinking culture.

It features interviews with former star players Malcolm McDonald, Stan Bowles and Alan Hudson who says: "If the Football League had a drinking championship, no one would have touched us."

Rodney Marsh, now a Sky TV pundit, also recounts how a doctor told him he had to stop his drinking or he would be dead by the age of 40. He says: "The doctor said, 'Your liver is one and a half times the size of a normal liver'."

The programme also tells of the time when a group of England's likely lads defied the then national team manager, Don Revie, by visiting George Best's nightclub Slack Alice during a team gathering in Manchester.