Meet this Sunday Division Club With 1,800 Premier League Appearances

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

How do you enhance a outstanding experienced side that have secured back-to-back titles, featuring a league-cup double boasting 30 victories from thirty-two games?

Bring in a raft of ex- professionals that have played at the highest level of club and global football as you aim for additional honors.

One Greater Manchester side boasts an amateur veterans team with 9 ex- Premier League footballers in their present squad.

Two Hundred Twenty-Two Premier League Scores, Three Hundred Twenty-Five Global Caps

The team Vets Over 35s are based in southern the city and compete in the Cheshire Vets Division Premier Tier.

Their lineup this campaign includes nine ex- top-flight footballers, with a collective nearly 1,800 elite appearances.

The star-studded roster also boasts 222 top division scores and 325 international appearances.

They feature Papiss Cisse, who scored thirty-seven goals in 117 appearances for his former club after joining them for £9m from Bundesliga club SC Freiburg in 2012.

Cisse had his debut for Wythenshawe in their last home game versus reigning champions their rivals and scored all six goals in a six-two win - including a half-hour first-half hat-trick.

The team for this campaign also includes former pros such as England and Liverpool forward Emile Heskey, Hull City and Burnley FC midfielder George Boyd, Everton forward Oumar Niasse, Wigan Athletic full-back Maynor Figueroa, Manchester City pair Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and Premier League title winners Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

In total, the former top-flight players have claimed fifteen significant honors and moved for total transfer sums of approximately £123m.

Household Figures and Global Stars

Stephen Ireland in action
Stephen Ireland earned six Irish caps, scoring four goals

Ireland began playing for the team during pre-season this season through good friend and current Wythenshawe player Blake Norton, and the ex- Irish player then invited other ex-pros, who all play in a weekly nine-a-side game, to participate.

Former Senegal forward Niasse, who netted twelve goals in 65 top-flight games for the Toffees and even now goes to their matches at Goodison Park, also made his debut against the opposition - who are located in the city and wear an Everton warm-up gear as their strip.

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

"A mate Stephen told me 'come and have a game, 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 noticed them sporting Blue kits - I thought this is wrong for me!

"If you still love football and you know you can still do it, wherever you can kick a ball, what are you going to choose?

"Those spectators who turn up and see are happy and to make a day if they watch us playing there and to pose us queries - it's more like the pleasure of us getting a place we can play, with structure of course."

Such is the strength in depth at Wythenshawe, he had his debut at full-back.

"That's a bit different but then, I enjoy sprinting and just go inside - 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 running is what I'm seeking. It's enjoyable."

Maynor Figueroa in action
Former Wigan defender Maynor Figueroa is turning out for the team

'Surreal Feeling

In addition to Cisse's six scores on debut, Ireland has scored 8 in three appearances for Wythenshawe, while Boyd hit five on his debut match and Lescott, a defender by trade, scored a hat-trick in one game up front.

Wythenshawe are top of the Premier Tier with three wins from three and a GD of +19.

One opponent, thirty-eight, who plays on the flank for the opposition, faced ex- Latics defender Maynor Figueroa on Sunday - and had to tell his nine-year-old son who Emile Heskey was.

Figueroa has played at two global tournaments for Honduras, in as well as playing in over 200 Premier League matches.

"It was going round like wildfire they had all these ex-Premier League players," said Barrow.

"I think I was a bit awestruck playing against Figueroa to be honest.

"Also Heskey got on and he's has over 60 England appearances.

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

"We really haven't ceased chatting about it - I was calling my mother and sibling on the way home.

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

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

'We'll Still Take the Title'

The manager coaches the Collegiate veterans team, who won the Top Division championship the previous campaign, together with his co-manager.

"We went one-nil ahead and had a

Kenneth King
Kenneth King

A seasoned iGaming analyst with over a decade of experience in reviewing online casinos and bonus offers, specializing in the Dutch market.