Discover this Sunday Division Club Featuring Over 1,800 English Top Division Appearances

Wythenshawe Vets bench during a match
The bench for Wythenshawe Veterans in a 6-2 triumph against their opponents on October 19th (from left to right) - Oumar Niasse, Papiss Cisse, Marcel Edwards, Blake Norton, Maynor Figueroa, Dean Warburton and Emile Heskey

How can you enhance a stellar experienced side who have claimed consecutive championships, featuring a league-cup double boasting 30 wins from thirty-two games?

Bring in a group of ex- professionals that have performed at the top level of club football and global football as you aim for more silverware.

A Greater Manchester club has an amateur veterans squad with 9 ex- Premier League footballers in their present squad.

Two Hundred Twenty-Two Top Division Scores, Three Hundred Twenty-Five International Caps

The team Veterans Over-35s are situated in south Manchester and play in the Cheshire Vets Division Top Tier.

Their lineup this campaign includes nine former Premier League players, with a combined 1,801 Premier League appearances.

The star-studded roster also contains 222 Premier League scores and over 320 international appearances.

They feature one forward, who notched thirty-seven goals in 117 games for Newcastle United after joining them for nine million pounds from Bundesliga club Freiburg in 2012.

Cisse had his debut for Wythenshawe in their last home-field match against reigning title holders Collegiate Old Boys and netted every one of the six scores in a six-two victory - featuring a half-hour first-half hat-trick.

The roster for this campaign also includes former professionals such as English and Liverpool forward Emile Heskey, Hull City and Burnley FC winger George Boyd, Toffees forward Oumar Niasse, Wigan Athletic full-back Maynor Figueroa, Manchester City pair Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and top-flight title winners Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

In total, the ex- top-flight footballers have secured fifteen significant honors and transferred for combined transfer sums of around £123m.

Household Figures and International Players

Stephen Ireland in action
He won 6 Republic of Ireland caps, netting 4 scores

Stephen Ireland began playing for the side in preseason this season through good mate and current Wythenshawe teammate Blake Norton, and the former Republic of Ireland midfielder then invited additional ex-pros, who all play in a midweek small-sided game, to participate.

Former Senegal striker Niasse, who scored twelve scores in sixty-five Premier League games for the Toffees and even now attends their home games, also made his first appearance against the opposition - who are located in Liverpool and wear an Everton warm-up gear as their uniform.

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

"A friend Stephen told me 'join and play, it's good fun'," said Niasse.

"Then he told me we were playing a side from Liverpool and the shock I had when I noticed them sporting Everton kits - I say this is strange for me!

"When you still love football and you know you can still do it, anywhere you can kick a ball, what are you going to do?

"Those fans who turn up and watch are happy and to give someone's day if they watch us competing there and to ask us queries - it's more like the pleasure of us having somewhere we can play, with structure of course."

Such is the strength in depth at Wythenshawe, Niasse had his debut at defender.

"That's a little different but then, I love sprinting and just go inside - I'm not staying back that much," he added.

"I tell my centre-back 'I'm not staying' and that I'm just going to keep attacking.

"The running is what I'm seeking. It's good fun."

Maynor Figueroa in action
Ex- Wigan defender Maynor Figueroa is turning out for the team

'Surreal Experience

In addition to Cisse's six goals on debut, Stephen Ireland has scored 8 in three appearances for the side, while Boyd hit 5 on his debut match and Lescott, a centre-half by trade, scored a hat-trick in one game as a striker.

The team are leading of the Premier Division with 3 wins from 3 and a goal difference of plus nineteen.

Paul Barrow, thirty-eight, who plays on the flank for the opposition, came up against ex- Wigan defender Maynor Figueroa on the weekend - and had to tell his young boy who Emile Heskey was.

Figueroa has played at two global tournaments for his country, in as well as featuring in over 200 Premier League games.

"It was going round like wildfire they had these former top-flight stars," said Barrow.

"I felt I was a bit starstruck facing Figueroa to be honest.

"Even Emile [Heskey] came on and he's has 60-odd England appearances.

"Our side held our own for a good 20 minutes but then we had a man dismissed and it was tough.

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

"They were all really nice, shaking our hands after the match - it was like facing a bunch of regular fellas.

"Now we can't wait for the second fixture."

'We'll Still Win the Title'

The manager coaches the Collegiate vets team, who won the Premier Division championship the previous campaign, together with his co-manager.

"We scored 1-0 ahead and had a

Brianna Garza
Brianna Garza

Elara Vance is a wellness coach and lifestyle writer passionate about helping others find balance through mindfulness and creative expression.