Meet this Sunday League Club Boasting Over 1,800 Premier League Games

Wythenshawe Vets bench during a match
This substitutes for the team Veterans in a 6-2 win against their opponents 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 boost a stellar veteran squad that have won back-to-back titles, featuring a double triumph with thirty wins from thirty-two games?

Recruit a group of ex- pro players that have competed at the highest tier of club and international soccer as you pursue more trophies.

A Greater Manchester team boasts an amateur veterans squad with nine ex- Premier League footballers in their current lineup.

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

Wythenshawe Veterans Over 35s are situated in southern Manchester and play in the Cheshire Vets League Premier Tier.

The squad list this season includes nine former Premier League players, with a combined 1,801 elite matches.

This star-studded team also boasts 222 top division goals and 325 global appearances.

The squad include Papiss Cisse, who scored 37 scores in 117 games for Newcastle United after moving to them for £9m from German league side Freiburg in 2012.

He had his debut for Wythenshawe in their last home game versus defending title holders their rivals and scored all six scores in a six-two win - featuring a half-hour first-half triple.

Wythenshawe's squad for this campaign also includes former pros such as England and Liverpool forward Emile Heskey, Hull and Burnley winger George Boyd, Everton striker Oumar Niasse, Wigan defender Maynor Figueroa, Manchester City duo Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and top-flight championship winners Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

Collectively, the ex- top-flight footballers have secured fifteen major honors and transferred for total transfer sums of about £123 million.

Famous Names and Global Stars

Stephen Ireland in action
Stephen Ireland earned six Irish appearances, netting four goals

Ireland began playing for the side during preseason this summer through good mate and present team player Blake Norton, and the former Republic of Ireland player then asked other ex-pros, who all play in a midweek nine-a-side game, to participate.

Ex- Senegal striker Oumar Niasse, who scored twelve goals in sixty-five Premier League games for Everton and even now attends their matches at Goodison Park, also made his first appearance against Collegiate OB - who are based in Liverpool and wear an Everton warm-up gear as their uniform.

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

"A friend Stephen told me 'join and have a game, it's good fun'," commented the striker.

"After that he informed me we were playing a side from Liverpool and the shock I had when I noticed them sporting Blue shirts - I say this is strange for me!

"When you still love football and you feel you can still play, anywhere you can kick a ball, what are you going to choose?

"The people who come and see are happy and to make a day if they see us competing there and to pose us queries - it's really about the joy of us having somewhere we can enjoy football, with structure of course."

Such is the squad depth at the club, Niasse had his debut at defender.

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

"I warn my centre-back 'I'm not staying' 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 Feeling

In addition to the forward's six scores on debut, Ireland has netted eight in three games for Wythenshawe, while George Boyd scored 5 on his first appearance and Lescott, a defender by trade, notched a hat-trick in one match as a striker.

Wythenshawe are top of the Top Tier with three victories from three and a GD of +19.

Paul Barrow, 38, who features on the flank for the opposition, faced former Latics full-back Maynor Figueroa on the weekend - and had to tell his nine-year-old boy who Heskey was.

He has played at two global tournaments for Honduras, in addition to featuring in over 200 Premier League games.

"The news was spreading like wildfire they had all these ex-Premier League players," remarked Barrow.

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

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

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

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

"They were all dead sound, shaking our hands after the game - it was like playing a group of regular fellas.

"Now we are eager for the return match."

'We'll Still Take the Title'

Andy Kirby manages the opposition veterans side, who won the Premier Division title last season, together with his co-manager.

"Our team went 1-0 up and had a

Taylor Gutierrez
Taylor Gutierrez

A Dutch financial analyst passionate about helping expats and locals navigate personal finance in the Netherlands.