Introduce the Sunday League Team With Over 1,800 English Top Division Appearances

Wythenshawe Vets bench during a match
This substitutes for the team Vets in a six-two victory versus Collegiate Old Boys on October 19th (from left to right) - Oumar Niasse, another, Marcel Edwards, Blake Norton, Maynor Figueroa, Dean Warburton and Emile Heskey

What do you boost a stellar veteran team that have secured back-to-back championships, featuring a league-cup double boasting thirty wins from thirty-two games?

Recruit a collection of ex- pro players that have competed at the top tier of club and international soccer as you target additional silverware.

A Manchester team boasts an amateur vets squad with nine ex- Premier League players in their current lineup.

222 Top Division Goals, 325 Global Appearances

Wythenshawe Veterans Over-35s are situated in southern the city and compete in the Cheshire-based Vets League Top Tier.

The squad list this campaign includes 9 former Premier League players, with a collective over 1,800 Premier League matches.

The star-studded roster also boasts 222 Premier League scores and 325 international appearances.

The squad include one forward, who netted 37 scores in over 100 games for Newcastle United after joining them for £9m from Bundesliga club SC Freiburg in January 2012.

He made his first appearance for Wythenshawe in their most recent home-field match versus reigning title holders Collegiate Old Boys and scored all six scores in a six-two win - including a half-hour opening period triple.

The team for this campaign also includes former pros such as England and Anfield forward Emile Heskey, Hull City and Burnley midfielder George Boyd, Everton striker Oumar Niasse, Wigan full-back Maynor Figueroa, Manchester City duo Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and top-flight championship winners Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

Collectively, the ex- Premier League players have won 15 big trophies and moved for combined transfer sums of approximately £123m.

Household Figures and Global Players

Stephen Ireland in action
Stephen Ireland won 6 Irish caps, scoring four goals

Stephen Ireland began playing for the side during preseason this season through close mate and present team player Blake Norton, and the ex- Irish player then asked additional former professionals, who all compete in a midweek small-sided game, to participate.

Ex- Senegal forward Oumar Niasse, who scored 12 scores in 65 Premier League matches for the Toffees and even now attends their home games, also had his first appearance versus Collegiate OB - who are located in Liverpool and use an Blue warm-up gear as their strip.

Oumar Niasse playing for Everton
Oumar Niasse played for the club from 2016 and 2020

"My mate Stephen Ireland told me 'join and have a game, it's a laugh'," said the striker.

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

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

"The people who turn up and watch are pleased and to give someone's moment if they watch us playing there and to ask us questions - it's really about the pleasure of us having a place we can enjoy football, with structure of course."

So great is the bench strength at Wythenshawe, he had his first game at full-back.

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

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

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

Maynor Figueroa in action
Ex- Wigan Athletic full-back Maynor Figueroa is turning out for Wythenshawe

Unreal Feeling

Along with the forward's six goals on his first game, Ireland has netted 8 in 3 appearances for the side, while George Boyd scored 5 on his first appearance and Lescott, a defender by trade, notched a triple in one game up front.

The team are leading of the Top Tier with three wins from three and a goal difference of +19.

One opponent, 38, who plays on the wing for Collegiate OB, came up against former Latics defender Maynor Figueroa on Sunday - and had to tell his nine-year-old son who Emile Heskey was.

Figueroa has appeared at 2 global tournaments for his country, in addition to playing in over two hundred Premier League games.

"It was spreading like a rumor they had all these former top-flight players," remarked the player.

"I think I was a little awestruck facing him to be honest.

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

"We held our own for a solid twenty minutes but then we had a man dismissed and it was hard.

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

"The opponents were all dead sound, shaking our hands after the match - it was like facing a group of regular fellas.

"Now we are eager for the return fixture."

We Will Still Win the Title'

Andy Kirby manages the opposition veterans side, who won the Premier Division title the previous campaign, together with Paul Maguire.

"We scored 1-0 up and had a

Trevor Vazquez
Trevor Vazquez

A tech journalist and network specialist with over a decade of experience in telecommunications and digital infrastructure.