Meet this Sunday League Squad With Nearly Two Thousand English Top Division Appearances

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

How can you boost a outstanding experienced squad that have claimed consecutive titles, including a league-cup double boasting thirty wins from thirty-two games?

Bring in a raft of former professionals that have competed at the top level of club and international football as you target further silverware.

One Manchester side fields an amateur vets team with 9 ex- top-flight footballers in their current squad.

Two Hundred Twenty-Two Top Division Goals, 325 Global Caps

Wythenshawe Veterans Over 35s are situated in southern the city and compete in the Cheshire Vets Division Premier Division.

The squad list this campaign boasts 9 former Premier League footballers, with a total 1,801 Premier League games.

The high-profile roster also contains 222 Premier League goals and over 320 global caps.

They feature one forward, who scored 37 scores in 117 appearances for his former club after signing for them for £9m from German league side SC Freiburg in 2012.

Cisse made his first appearance for the team in their most recent home-field game against reigning champions their rivals and scored every one of the six scores in a six-two win - including a 32-minute first-half triple.

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

In total, the former top-flight players have secured 15 big honors and moved for total transfer fees of around £123m.

Household Names and Global Stars

Stephen Ireland in action
He earned six Republic of Ireland appearances, netting 4 goals

Stephen Ireland started turning out for the side in preseason this season through close friend and current Wythenshawe teammate Blake Norton, and the ex- Irish midfielder then invited additional former professionals, who all compete in a weekly nine-a-side match, to join in.

Former Senegalese striker Niasse, who scored 12 goals in sixty-five Premier League matches for Everton and even now attends their matches at Goodison Park, also had his debut versus Collegiate OB - who are based in Liverpool and use an Everton training kit as their uniform.

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

"My friend Stephen Ireland said 'join and play, it's good fun'," said the striker.

"After that he told me we were playing a side from the city and the surprise I had when I saw them wearing Blue kits - I say this is wrong for me!

"If you still love football and you feel you can still do it, wherever you can play, what are you going to do?

"Those fans who turn up and watch are happy and to give someone's day if they watch us playing there and to ask us queries - it's really about the pleasure of us having somewhere we can enjoy football, with organisation of course."

Such is the bench strength at Wythenshawe, he made his first game at full-back.

"It's a bit different but then, I enjoy running and just go inside - I'm not defending that much," he added.

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

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

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

Unreal Experience

In addition to the forward's six scores on debut, Stephen Ireland has scored 8 in 3 appearances for the side, while Boyd hit five on his debut match and Joleon Lescott, a defender by position, scored a triple in one match as a striker.

Wythenshawe are leading of the Top Division with 3 wins from 3 and a GD of +19.

One opponent, thirty-eight, who features on the wing for the opposition, came up against ex- Latics full-back Maynor Figueroa on the weekend - and had to explain his young boy who Heskey was.

Figueroa has appeared at 2 global tournaments for his country, in as well as playing in over two hundred Premier League matches.

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

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

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

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

"We literally have not stopped chatting about it - I was phoning my mother and brother on the journey home.

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

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

We Will Still Win the Title'

Andy Kirby coaches the opposition vets team, who won the Premier Division championship last season, together with his co-manager.

"Our team went 1-0 ahead and had a

Tina Scott
Tina Scott

Elena Voss is a business strategist with over 15 years of experience in global consulting, specializing in digital transformation and market expansion.