Meet the Sunday League Club With Over 1,800 Premier League Matches

Wythenshawe Vets bench during a match
The bench for Wythenshawe Veterans in a six-two triumph versus their opponents on October 19th (from left to right) - Oumar Niasse, another, Marcel Edwards, Blake Norton, Maynor Figueroa, Dean Warburton and Emile Heskey

How can you boost a excellent veteran squad who have won back-to-back championships, including a double triumph boasting thirty wins from thirty-two matches?

Sign a group of former pro players who have played at the elite level of club football and global soccer as you aim for more honors.

One Manchester side fields an amateur vets squad with nine ex- Premier League footballers in their current squad.

222 Premier League Scores, 325 International Appearances

Wythenshawe Vets Over 35s are situated in southern Manchester and play in the Cheshire Veterans League Premier Tier.

Their roster this season boasts 9 former top-flight players, with a total nearly 1,800 elite appearances.

This star-studded team also contains 222 top division goals and over 320 global caps.

They include Papiss Cisse, who netted 37 scores in 117 appearances for his former club after moving to them for nine million pounds from Bundesliga side SC Freiburg in 2012.

Cisse had his debut for Wythenshawe in their most recent home game versus reigning title holders their rivals and scored every one of the six scores in a six-two victory - including a half-hour opening period triple.

The team for this campaign also features former pros such as England and Anfield forward Emile Heskey, Hull and Burnley midfielder George Boyd, Toffees forward Oumar Niasse, Wigan defender Maynor Figueroa, City pair Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and Premier League championship winners Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

Collectively, the former Premier League players have won 15 significant trophies and moved for combined transfer sums of approximately £123 million.

Well-Known Names and Global Players

Stephen Ireland in action
He won 6 Republic of Ireland appearances, scoring 4 goals

Ireland started turning out for the side in pre-season this summer through close friend and current Wythenshawe player Blake Norton, and the ex- Republic of Ireland midfielder then invited additional former professionals, who all compete in a weekly small-sided match, to participate.

Ex- Senegal forward Oumar Niasse, who scored 12 scores in 65 top-flight games for the Toffees and still attends their home games, also made his debut against Collegiate OB - who are based in Liverpool and use an Blue training kit as their strip.

Oumar Niasse playing for Everton
Oumar Niasse featured for the club between 2016 and 2020

"A friend Stephen Ireland told me 'join and have a game, it's enjoyable'," commented the striker.

"After that he informed me we were facing a side from the city and the shock I had when I saw them sporting Blue kits - I thought this is wrong for me!

"If you still love the game and you feel you can still play, wherever you can kick a ball, what are you going to choose?

"Those people who come and watch are pleased and to make a day if they watch us playing there and to ask us queries - it's really about the joy of us having somewhere we can play, with structure of course."

So great is the squad depth at the club, he had his debut at full-back.

"It's a bit different but then, I enjoy sprinting and just move inside - I'm not staying back that much," he said.

"I warn my defender 'I'm not hanging back' and that I'm just going to continue running.

"That running is what I'm looking for. It's good fun."

Maynor Figueroa in action
Former Wigan Athletic defender Maynor Figueroa is turning out for the team

Dreamlike' Feeling

In addition to the forward's 6 goals on his first game, Stephen Ireland has scored eight in 3 appearances for the side, while George Boyd hit five on his debut match and Lescott, a defender by trade, notched a triple in one match up front.

The team are top of the Premier Division with three wins from three and a GD of +19.

One opponent, thirty-eight, who plays on the flank for Collegiate OB, came up against former Wigan full-back Maynor Figueroa on Sunday - and had to tell his nine-year-old boy who Emile Heskey was.

Figueroa has appeared at two global tournaments for Honduras, in addition to playing in more than two hundred Premier League matches.

"The news was spreading like a rumor they had all these former top-flight players," said Barrow.

"I think I was a little starstruck playing against Figueroa to be honest.

"Even Emile [Heskey] came on and he's got over 60 England caps.

"We held our own for a good 20 minutes but then we had a man sent off and it was hard.

"We literally have not stopped talking about it - I was phoning my mum and sibling on the way home.

"They were all friendly, shaking our hands after the game - it was like playing a bunch of normal fellas.

"Now we are eager for the return fixture."

'We'll Still Take the Title'

Andy Kirby coaches the opposition vets team, who won the Top Division championship last season, along with Paul Maguire.

"We scored 1-0 ahead and had a

Mr. George Cooper
Mr. George Cooper

A certified dermatologist with over 10 years of experience, passionate about natural skincare and empowering others.