Discover the Weekend Division Team With 1,800 Premier League Matches

Wythenshawe Vets bench during a match
The bench for Wythenshawe Veterans in a six-two win versus Collegiate Old Boys on 19 October (left to right) - Oumar Niasse, Papiss Cisse, Marcel Edwards, Blake Norton, Maynor Figueroa, Dean Warburton and Emile Heskey

How can you boost a stellar experienced team that have won back-to-back titles, featuring a double triumph boasting thirty victories from 32 games?

Bring in a collection of former professionals that have performed at the highest tier of club and international soccer as you aim for further honors.

A Greater Manchester side boasts an amateur vets team with 9 ex- Premier League footballers in their current roster.

222 Top Division Goals, Three Hundred Twenty-Five International Caps

The team Veterans Over-35s are based in south the city and play in the Cheshire Vets Division Premier Tier.

Their lineup this season features 9 ex- top-flight footballers, with a combined 1,801 Premier League appearances.

The star-studded squad also includes over 220 top division scores and 325 international appearances.

The squad include Papiss Cisse, who notched thirty-seven goals in over 100 games for his former club after signing for them for nine million pounds from Bundesliga club Freiburg in 2012.

Cisse made his first appearance for the team in their most recent home-field game versus defending title holders Collegiate Old Boys and netted all six goals in a six-two victory - including a 32-minute first-half hat-trick.

Wythenshawe's team for this campaign also includes ex- pros such as England and Liverpool striker Emile Heskey, Hull and Burnley FC midfielder George Boyd, Everton striker Oumar Niasse, Wigan full-back Maynor Figueroa, City pair Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and Premier League title victors Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

In total, the former top-flight players have claimed 15 major honors and moved for combined transfer fees of about £123m.

Famous Names and International Players

Stephen Ireland in action
Stephen Ireland won 6 Republic of Ireland caps, netting four goals

Stephen Ireland began turning out for the side in pre-season this summer through close mate and present team teammate Blake Norton, and the former Irish player then invited other ex-pros, who all compete in a weekly small-sided game, to join in.

Former Senegal forward Niasse, who netted twelve goals in 65 Premier League matches for the Toffees and still attends their matches at Goodison Park, also made his debut against the opposition - who are located in Liverpool and use an Blue training kit as their strip.

Oumar Niasse playing for Everton
He played for Everton from 2016 and 2020

"My friend Stephen Ireland said 'join and have a game, it's good fun'," commented the striker.

"Then he told me we were facing a side from Liverpool and the surprise I had when I noticed them sporting Everton shirts - I thought this is wrong for me!

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

"Those people who turn up and watch are pleased and to give a moment if they see us playing there and to pose us questions - it's more like the joy of us having a place we can play, with organisation of course."

So great is the squad depth at Wythenshawe, he had his debut at defender.

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

"I warn my centre-back 'I'm not staying' and that I'm just going to continue running.

"The movement is what I'm after. It's enjoyable."

Maynor Figueroa in action
Ex- Wigan Athletic full-back Maynor Figueroa is turning out for Wythenshawe

Unreal Scenario

In addition to the forward's six goals on his first game, Ireland has scored eight in three games for Wythenshawe, while Boyd scored 5 on his debut match and Lescott, a centre-half by trade, scored a hat-trick in one game as a striker.

Wythenshawe are leading of the Premier Division with three victories from 3 and a goal difference of +19.

Paul Barrow, 38, who features on the wing for Collegiate OB, came up against former Latics full-back Maynor Figueroa on Sunday - and had to explain his nine-year-old son who Heskey was.

Figueroa has appeared at two World Cups for his country, in addition to playing in more than 200 top-flight matches.

"It was spreading like a rumor they had these ex-Premier League stars," said Barrow.

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

"Even Heskey came on and he's got 60-odd English caps.

"We competed well for a good twenty mins but then we had a player sent off and it was hard.

"Our group literally haven't stopped chatting about it - I was calling my mum and sibling on the journey home.

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

"Now we are eager for the second fixture."

'We'll Still Win the Title'

Andy Kirby coaches the opposition vets side, who won the Top Division championship last season, together with his co-manager.

"We scored 1-0 ahead and had a

Mark Jones
Mark Jones

A tech journalist and digital strategist with over a decade of experience covering emerging technologies and their impact on society.