Discover this Weekend Division Club With 1,800 English Top Division Matches

Wythenshawe Vets bench during a match
The bench for the team Vets in a 6-2 win against Collegiate Old Boys on 19 October (left to right) - Oumar Niasse, Papiss Cisse, a teammate, Blake Norton, Maynor Figueroa, Dean Warburton and Emile Heskey

What can you boost a excellent veteran side who have claimed back-to-back championships, including a league-cup double boasting thirty victories from 32 matches?

Recruit a collection of ex- pro players who have competed at the highest level of club football and international football as you aim for additional honors.

A Greater Manchester club fields an amateur vets squad with nine ex- Premier League players in their present roster.

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

The team Vets Over 35s are based in south the city and compete in the Cheshire-based Vets League Top Tier.

The lineup this season features nine former top-flight footballers, with a total nearly 1,800 Premier League appearances.

The star-studded squad also contains over 220 top division scores and 325 global caps.

They include Papiss Cisse, who netted thirty-seven scores in 117 games for Newcastle United after moving to them for £9m from Bundesliga side SC Freiburg in 2012.

Cisse made his debut for the team in their most recent home-field match versus defending title holders their rivals and netted all six scores in a 6-2 win - including a 32-minute first-half hat-trick.

Wythenshawe's team for this campaign also features former professionals such as England and Liverpool forward Emile Heskey, Hull and Burnley FC winger George Boyd, Toffees striker Oumar Niasse, Wigan full-back Maynor Figueroa, Manchester City pair Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and Premier League title winners Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

In total, the ex- top-flight footballers have secured 15 major honors and moved for combined transfer fees of approximately £123m.

Famous Figures and Global Stars

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

Ireland started playing for the team in preseason this summer through close friend and current Wythenshawe teammate Blake Norton, and the ex- Irish midfielder then asked additional ex-pros, who all play in a midweek nine-a-side match, to participate.

Ex- Senegalese forward Oumar Niasse, who netted twelve goals in 65 top-flight matches for Everton and even now goes to their matches at Goodison Park, also had his first appearance against Collegiate OB - who are based in the city and use an Blue training kit as their strip.

Oumar Niasse playing for Everton
He featured for the club from 2016 and 2020

"A mate Stephen Ireland told me 'join and have a game, it's a laugh'," said the striker.

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

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

"The people who come and watch are pleased and to make a moment if they watch us playing there and to pose us questions - it's really about the pleasure of us having somewhere we can enjoy football, with organisation of course."

So great is the squad depth at Wythenshawe, Niasse made his debut at defender.

"That's a bit different but then, I enjoy sprinting and just move forward - I'm not defending that much," he added.

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

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

Maynor Figueroa in action
Ex- Wigan defender Maynor Figueroa is playing for Wythenshawe

Dreamlike' Experience

In addition to Cisse's six goals on his first game, Ireland has scored 8 in three appearances for the side, while George Boyd scored 5 on his first appearance and Lescott, a defender by position, notched a triple in one match up front.

Wythenshawe are top of the Top Tier with 3 victories from 3 and a goal difference of +19.

Paul Barrow, thirty-eight, who plays on the flank for the opposition, faced former Latics defender Maynor Figueroa on Sunday - and had to explain his nine-year-old boy who Emile Heskey was.

Figueroa has played at two global tournaments for his country, in as well as playing in more than 200 Premier League matches.

"It was spreading like a rumor they had these ex-Premier League stars," remarked the player.

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

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

"Our side competed well for a solid 20 minutes but then we had a player sent off and it was hard.

"We really haven't ceased chatting about it - I was phoning my mum and brother on the journey home.

"The opponents were all dead sound, shaking our hands after the match - it was like playing a group of regular guys.

"Now we are eager for the return fixture."

We Will Still Take the Title'

Andy Kirby manages the opposition veterans team, who won the Top Tier title the previous campaign, together with Paul Maguire.

"Our team went 1-0 up and had a

Alex Ward
Alex Ward

A tech enthusiast and writer with a passion for exploring cutting-edge innovations and sharing practical advice for everyday users.