Meet the Weekend League Team With Over 1,800 Top-Flight Appearances

Wythenshawe Vets bench during a match
The substitutes for Wythenshawe Veterans during a 6-2 victory versus their opponents on October 19th (from left to right) - Oumar Niasse, another, a teammate, Blake Norton, Maynor Figueroa, Dean Warburton and Emile Heskey

How can you enhance a outstanding experienced team who have won consecutive championships, including a league-cup double with thirty wins from 32 games?

Recruit a raft of ex- professionals who have competed at the elite level of club football and global football as you target additional silverware.

One Greater Manchester side has an non-professional veterans squad with 9 ex- Premier League footballers in their current lineup.

222 Top Division Scores, 325 International Caps

Wythenshawe Vets Over-35s are based in south the city and play in the Cheshire Vets Division Premier Division.

The roster this season includes 9 former top-flight players, with a combined 1,801 top-flight appearances.

This high-profile squad also boasts 222 top division scores and over 320 global caps.

The squad include Papiss Cisse, who notched thirty-seven goals in 117 appearances for Newcastle United after signing for them for nine million pounds from German league side Freiburg in January 2012.

He had his first appearance for the team in their most recent home game against reigning title holders Collegiate Old Boys and scored all six scores in a six-two win - featuring a 32-minute first-half hat-trick.

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

In total, the former Premier League footballers have claimed 15 big honors and transferred for combined transfer fees of around £123m.

Household Figures and International Stars

Stephen Ireland in action
He won six Republic of Ireland caps, scoring 4 scores

Ireland began turning out for the team during pre-season this season through close friend and current Wythenshawe teammate Blake Norton, and the ex- Irish midfielder then invited other former professionals, who all play in a weekly small-sided game, to join in.

Former Senegalese forward Oumar Niasse, who scored 12 scores in 65 Premier League matches for Everton and even now goes to their home games, also made his debut versus the opposition - who are located in the city and wear an Blue training kit as their strip.

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

"My friend Stephen Ireland said 'come and play, it's enjoyable'," said Niasse.

"After that he told me we were facing a side from Liverpool and the surprise I had when I noticed them wearing Everton shirts - I say this is strange for me!

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

"The fans who come and see are happy and to make a moment if they watch us playing there and to pose us queries - it's more like the pleasure of us having somewhere we can play, with organisation of course."

Such is the strength in depth at the club, he made his first game at full-back.

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

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

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

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

Dreamlike' Scenario

Along with the forward's six scores on debut, Stephen Ireland has scored 8 in three games for the side, while George Boyd scored 5 on his first appearance and Lescott, a centre-half by trade, scored a hat-trick in one match as a striker.

The team are leading of the Premier Tier with 3 wins from 3 and a GD of plus nineteen.

Paul Barrow, thirty-eight, who plays on the wing for Collegiate OB, faced ex- Wigan defender Maynor Figueroa on Sunday - and had to explain his young son who Emile Heskey was.

He has played at 2 World Cups for his country, in as well as playing in over two hundred Premier League games.

"The news was going round like wildfire they had these former top-flight players," said Barrow.

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

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

"We held our own for a solid 20 minutes but then we had a man sent off and it was tough.

"Our group literally haven't stopped talking about it - I was phoning my mother and brother on the way home.

"They were all really nice, shaking our hands after the game - it was like facing a group of normal fellas.

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

We Will Still Win the League'

The manager manages the opposition veterans side, who won the Top Division championship the previous campaign, together with his co-manager.

"Our team scored one-nil up and had a

Tina Lawson
Tina Lawson

A tech journalist and gaming enthusiast with over a decade of experience covering digital trends and innovations across Europe.

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