Meet the Sunday Division Team With Nearly Two Thousand English Top Division Appearances

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

How do you boost a outstanding veteran side that have claimed back-to-back titles, including a league-cup double boasting thirty wins from thirty-two games?

Bring in a raft of former pro players that have played at the top level of club and international football as you target additional silverware.

One Manchester side boasts an amateur veterans team with nine former Premier League footballers in their current roster.

Two Hundred Twenty-Two Premier League Scores, Three Hundred Twenty-Five Global Appearances

The team Veterans Over 35s are located in southern Manchester and compete in the Cheshire Vets League Top Tier.

Their squad list this campaign includes nine ex- top-flight footballers, with a total over 1,800 elite appearances.

The elite team also contains over 220 Premier League scores and over 320 global appearances.

They feature one forward, who notched 37 scores in 117 games for his former club after moving to them for £9m from Bundesliga club SC Freiburg in 2012.

He had his first appearance for the team in their last home match against reigning champions Collegiate Old Boys and netted every one of the six goals in a 6-2 victory - including a half-hour opening period hat-trick.

The squad for this season also features former professionals such as England and Liverpool striker Emile Heskey, Hull and Burnley midfielder George Boyd, Everton forward Oumar Niasse, Wigan full-back Maynor Figueroa, City pair Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and Premier League title winners Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

Together, the ex- Premier League players have won 15 significant honors and moved for combined transfer sums of around £123m.

Household Names and Global Players

Stephen Ireland in action
He earned 6 Irish caps, netting 4 goals

Ireland started playing for the side during preseason this season through close mate and present team teammate Blake Norton, and the ex- Republic of Ireland player then asked other ex-pros, who all compete in a midweek nine-a-side game, to join in.

Ex- Senegalese forward Oumar Niasse, who netted twelve scores in sixty-five top-flight matches for Everton and even now goes to their matches at Goodison Park, also had his first appearance versus Collegiate OB - who are located in Liverpool and wear an Blue warm-up gear as their strip.

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

"A friend Stephen told me 'come and have a game, it's good fun'," said Niasse.

"Then he told me we were playing a team from Liverpool and the shock I had when I noticed them wearing Everton shirts - I thought this is strange for me!

"When you still enjoy the game and you feel you can still play, wherever you can kick a ball, what are you going to do?

"Those fans who come and watch are pleased and to make someone's moment if they watch us playing there and to ask us queries - it's really about the joy of us getting somewhere we can enjoy football, with structure of course."

So great is the strength in depth at the club, he had his first game at full-back.

"It's a bit different but then, I love running and just move forward - I'm not staying back that much," he added.

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

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

Maynor Figueroa in action
Former Wigan defender Maynor Figueroa is turning out for Wythenshawe

Unreal Experience

In addition to Cisse's six goals on his first game, Stephen Ireland has scored eight in three games for Wythenshawe, while Boyd scored 5 on his debut appearance and Joleon Lescott, a defender by position, scored a triple in one game as a striker.

The team are top of the Top Division with 3 wins from 3 and a goal difference of +19.

One opponent, 38, who plays on the wing for Collegiate OB, came up against ex- Wigan defender Figueroa on Sunday - and had to tell his nine-year-old boy who Heskey was.

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

"The news was spreading like wildfire they had these ex-Premier League stars," said Barrow.

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

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

"Our side competed well for a solid twenty mins but then we had a player sent off and it was tough.

"Our group literally haven't ceased chatting about it - I was calling my mother and sibling on the way home.

"The opponents were all really nice, shaking our hands after the game - it was like playing a group of regular guys.

"Now we are eager for the second fixture."

We Will Still Take the Title'

The manager manages the opposition veterans side, who won the Top Tier title the previous campaign, together with Paul Maguire.

"Our team scored one-nil ahead and had a

James Mullins
James Mullins

A blockchain gaming enthusiast and tech writer who analyzes emerging trends in decentralized gaming and NFT markets.