Meet the Weekend League Club Boasting Nearly Two Thousand Premier League Appearances

Wythenshawe Vets bench during a match
This substitutes for the team Veterans during a six-two win versus Collegiate Old Boys on 19 October (from left to right) - one player, Papiss Cisse, Marcel Edwards, Blake Norton, Maynor Figueroa, Dean Warburton and Emile Heskey

How do you improve a stellar experienced squad that have won consecutive championships, featuring a double triumph with 30 victories from 32 games?

Bring in a group of ex- professionals that have played at the top level of club and international soccer as you aim for more silverware.

A Manchester team boasts an non-professional veterans team with 9 former top-flight footballers in their current roster.

Two Hundred Twenty-Two Premier League Goals, 325 Global Caps

Wythenshawe Veterans Over 35s are located in south Manchester and play in the Cheshire Vets Division Top Tier.

Their lineup this season boasts nine ex- Premier League players, with a combined nearly 1,800 Premier League games.

The star-studded roster also includes 222 top division goals and 325 global caps.

The squad include one forward, who scored thirty-seven goals in over 100 appearances for Newcastle United after moving to them for nine million pounds from German league club SC Freiburg in 2012.

Cisse had his debut for Wythenshawe in their most recent home match versus reigning champions their rivals and scored all six scores in a 6-2 victory - including a half-hour opening period hat-trick.

Wythenshawe's team for this season also includes ex- pros such as England and Anfield forward Emile Heskey, Hull City and Burnley FC midfielder George Boyd, Toffees striker Oumar Niasse, Wigan full-back Maynor Figueroa, City pair Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and top-flight title victors Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

Collectively, the ex- top-flight players have secured 15 major honors and transferred for combined transfer fees of around £123 million.

Well-Known Names and Global Stars

Stephen Ireland in action
Stephen Ireland won 6 Republic of Ireland caps, netting four goals

Ireland started playing for the team during pre-season this season through good mate and present team player Blake Norton, and the ex- Republic of Ireland player then invited additional former professionals, who all play in a midweek nine-a-side match, to join in.

Ex- Senegalese forward Oumar Niasse, who netted 12 goals in 65 Premier League games for the Toffees and even now attends their matches at Goodison Park, also made his debut versus the opposition - who are located in Liverpool and use an Everton training kit as their uniform.

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

"My friend Stephen said 'join and play, it's enjoyable'," said the striker.

"Then he informed me we were facing a team from Liverpool and the shock I had when I saw them sporting Everton kits - I say this is strange for me!

"If you still enjoy the game and you know you can still play, anywhere you can play, what are you going to choose?

"Those people who turn up and watch are pleased and to make a moment if they watch us playing there and to ask us queries - it's really about the pleasure of us getting somewhere we can play, with organisation of course."

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

"That's a little unusual but then, I love sprinting and just go inside - I'm not staying back that much," he said.

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

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

Maynor Figueroa in action
Former Wigan defender Maynor Figueroa is playing for Wythenshawe

'Surreal Feeling

In addition to Cisse's six scores on debut, Stephen Ireland has netted 8 in 3 games for Wythenshawe, while Boyd scored five on his first match and Lescott, a defender by position, scored a hat-trick in one match up front.

The team are leading of the Premier Division with 3 victories from 3 and a GD of +19.

Paul Barrow, 38, who plays on the flank for Collegiate OB, faced ex- Latics full-back Maynor Figueroa on Sunday - and had to explain his nine-year-old boy who Emile Heskey was.

He has appeared at 2 World Cups for Honduras, in addition to featuring in more than two hundred Premier League games.

"The news was going round like a rumor they had these ex-Premier League stars," remarked the player.

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

"Also Emile [Heskey] got on and he's got over 60 English appearances.

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

"Our group really haven't ceased talking about it - I was calling my mum and sibling on the way home.

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

"Now we are eager for the return fixture."

'We'll Still Win the Title'

The manager manages the opposition vets team, who secured the Premier Division championship last season, together with Paul Maguire.

"We went 1-0 up and had a

Terry Anderson
Terry Anderson

A seasoned casino enthusiast with over a decade of experience in slot game analysis and gambling industry trends.