Meet this Sunday League Squad Boasting Nearly Two Thousand Premier League Appearances

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

How do you enhance a outstanding veteran squad that have claimed back-to-back titles, including a double triumph with thirty victories from thirty-two matches?

Bring in a group of former pro players who have played at the elite level of club and global football as you pursue additional silverware.

One Manchester team fields an amateur veterans team with 9 former Premier League footballers in their current lineup.

Two Hundred Twenty-Two Premier League Scores, 325 Global Appearances

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

The roster this campaign features 9 ex- top-flight footballers, with a collective over 1,800 Premier League matches.

The high-profile squad also boasts 222 Premier League scores and 325 international appearances.

The squad include one forward, who netted 37 goals in over 100 appearances for Newcastle United after moving to them for £9m from Bundesliga side Freiburg in January 2012.

Cisse made his first appearance for Wythenshawe in their last home game against reigning champions Collegiate Old Boys and netted every one of the six scores in a six-two victory - including a 32-minute first-half triple.

The squad for this campaign also includes ex- professionals such as English and Anfield striker Emile Heskey, Hull and Burnley FC midfielder George Boyd, Toffees striker Oumar Niasse, Wigan Athletic defender Maynor Figueroa, City duo Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and Premier League championship winners Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

In total, the former top-flight players have won fifteen big trophies and transferred for combined transfer fees of around £123m.

Household Names and International Stars

Stephen Ireland in action
He won six Republic of Ireland appearances, netting four scores

Stephen Ireland began playing for the side in pre-season this summer through close mate and current team teammate Blake Norton, and the former Irish player then asked additional ex-pros, who all compete in a weekly small-sided game, to participate.

Former Senegal striker Oumar Niasse, who scored twelve goals in 65 top-flight games for the Toffees and even now goes to their home games, also had his debut versus the opposition - who are located in the city and wear an Everton training kit as their uniform.

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

"A friend Stephen Ireland told me 'join and play, it's a laugh'," said the striker.

"After that he told me we were playing a team from the city and the shock I had when I saw them sporting Everton kits - I thought this is strange for me!

"When you still enjoy the game and you know you can still do it, wherever you can play, what are you going to choose?

"The people who come and watch are happy and to make someone's day if they watch us playing there and to pose us questions - it's more like the pleasure of us getting a place we can enjoy football, with structure of course."

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

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

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

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

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

'Surreal Experience

In addition to the forward's six scores on debut, Stephen Ireland has netted eight in three games for Wythenshawe, while George Boyd hit 5 on his debut match and Joleon Lescott, a centre-half by trade, notched a triple in one game up front.

The team are top of the Top Division with 3 victories from 3 and a GD of plus nineteen.

One opponent, thirty-eight, who features on the flank for the opposition, came up against former Latics defender Maynor Figueroa on Sunday - and had to tell his nine-year-old boy who Heskey was.

He has played at 2 global tournaments for Honduras, in as well as playing in more than 200 Premier League games.

"It was spreading like wildfire they had all these ex-Premier League players," remarked the player.

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

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

"We held our own for a solid 20 mins but then we had a player sent off and it was hard.

"We really have not stopped talking about it - I was calling my mother and sibling on the way home.

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

"Now we can't wait for the return match."

'We'll Still Win the League'

The manager manages the Collegiate vets team, who secured the Premier Tier championship last season, along with his co-manager.

"Our team went one-nil ahead and had a

Steven Reilly
Steven Reilly

A tech journalist and business strategist with over a decade of experience covering digital transformation and startup ecosystems across Europe.