Meet this Weekend League Squad With Nearly Two Thousand Top-Flight Matches

Wythenshawe Vets bench during a match
This bench for the team Veterans in a 6-2 win against Collegiate Old Boys on October 19th (left to right) - Oumar Niasse, another, Marcel Edwards, Blake Norton, Maynor Figueroa, Dean Warburton and Emile Heskey

What can you improve a stellar experienced side who have won consecutive titles, featuring a double triumph with thirty wins from thirty-two games?

Bring in a collection of ex- pro players who have played at the highest tier of club football and international soccer as you aim for more trophies.

A Manchester side boasts an amateur vets team with 9 former top-flight players in their present lineup.

222 Top Division Scores, Three Hundred Twenty-Five International Appearances

The team Veterans Over 35s are located in southern Manchester and play in the Cheshire-based Vets League Top Division.

Their lineup this campaign features nine former top-flight footballers, with a combined over 1,800 elite appearances.

The high-profile roster also contains over 220 top division goals and 325 global appearances.

They feature Papiss Cisse, who netted 37 goals in 117 appearances for his former club after signing for them for nine million pounds from Bundesliga club Freiburg in 2012.

He had his debut for Wythenshawe in their last home match versus reigning champions their rivals and netted all six scores in a six-two victory - featuring a half-hour opening period triple.

Wythenshawe's roster for this season also includes ex- professionals such as English and Anfield forward Emile Heskey, Hull City and Burnley winger George Boyd, Everton forward Oumar Niasse, Wigan Athletic defender Maynor Figueroa, City duo Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and Premier League championship winners Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

Together, the ex- Premier League footballers have secured fifteen significant trophies and moved for total transfer fees of about ÂŁ123m.

Famous Names and Global Stars

Stephen Ireland in action
He won six Republic of Ireland appearances, scoring four scores

Ireland started playing for the side during preseason this season through close friend and present Wythenshawe teammate Blake Norton, and the ex- Republic of Ireland player then invited other ex-pros, who all play in a weekly small-sided match, to join in.

Former Senegal striker Oumar Niasse, who netted 12 goals in sixty-five top-flight matches for Everton and still attends their matches at Goodison Park, also made his first appearance against Collegiate OB - who are located in the city and use an Blue warm-up gear as their strip.

Oumar Niasse playing for Everton
He featured for the club from 2016 and 2020

"A friend Stephen said 'join and play, it's a laugh'," said the striker.

"After that he informed me we were facing a team from the city and the shock I had when I noticed them wearing Everton shirts - I say this is strange for me!

"When you still love the game and you feel you can still play, wherever you can play, what are you going to choose?

"Those fans who come and see are happy and to make someone's day if they watch us playing there and to pose us questions - it's more like the joy of us having somewhere we can enjoy football, with structure of course."

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

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

"I tell my centre-back 'I'm not staying' and that I'm just going to continue running.

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

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

Unreal Feeling

In addition to Cisse's 6 scores on his first game, Stephen Ireland has netted 8 in 3 games for the side, while Boyd scored five on his debut appearance and Lescott, a centre-half by trade, notched a hat-trick in one match as a striker.

Wythenshawe are leading of the Top Tier with 3 victories from 3 and a goal difference of +19.

Paul Barrow, thirty-eight, who features on the flank for Collegiate OB, came up against former Latics defender Maynor Figueroa on the weekend - and had to tell his nine-year-old boy who Heskey was.

He has appeared at two World Cups for his country, in as well as featuring in more than 200 top-flight matches.

"It was spreading like wildfire they had all these ex-Premier League stars," remarked the player.

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

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

"Our side competed well for a solid twenty minutes but then we had a man sent off and it was hard.

"Our group really haven't stopped talking about it - I was calling my mother and brother on the journey home.

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

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

We Will Still Take the League'

The manager manages the Collegiate vets side, who secured the Premier Division title last season, along with Paul Maguire.

"Our team scored one-nil ahead and had a

Kimberly Cooper
Kimberly Cooper

A passionate gaming journalist and community moderator with over a decade of experience covering the UK gaming scene.