Meet the Weekend Division Club Featuring Over 1,800 Premier League Matches

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

How do you enhance a outstanding experienced squad who have claimed consecutive titles, including a double triumph with 30 wins from thirty-two games?

Recruit a group of former professionals who have performed at the elite level of club football and global soccer as you target more silverware.

One Manchester team boasts an amateur veterans team with 9 former Premier League players in their current roster.

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

Wythenshawe Veterans Over-35s are based in south the city and compete in the Cheshire Vets League Top Division.

Their lineup this campaign features 9 ex- Premier League players, with a combined over 1,800 elite appearances.

The high-profile team also contains over 220 Premier League scores and over 320 global caps.

The squad include Papiss Cisse, who netted 37 scores in over 100 appearances for his former club after signing for them for nine million pounds from Bundesliga side SC Freiburg in 2012.

He made his debut for Wythenshawe in their last home game against defending champions Collegiate Old Boys and scored every one of the six scores in a 6-2 victory - including a half-hour opening period triple.

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

Collectively, the former Premier League footballers have secured 15 big trophies and moved for total transfer fees of around £123m.

Famous Names and Global Players

Stephen Ireland in action
He won six Irish appearances, scoring 4 goals

Ireland began playing for the team during pre-season this summer through good mate and present Wythenshawe player Blake Norton, and the former Irish midfielder then invited other former professionals, who all compete in a weekly small-sided game, to join in.

Ex- Senegalese striker Oumar Niasse, who scored twelve goals in 65 Premier League games for Everton and even now attends their home games, also had his debut against the opposition - who are based in Liverpool and wear an Blue training kit as their uniform.

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

"My friend Stephen Ireland told me 'come and play, it's enjoyable'," commented the striker.

"After that he informed me we were facing a side from Liverpool and the shock I had when I noticed them wearing Everton kits - I thought this is wrong for me!

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

"Those fans who turn up and watch are happy and to make someone's moment if they watch us competing there and to pose us questions - it's more like the joy of us getting a place we can enjoy football, with structure of course."

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

"That's a little different but then, I love running and just go forward - I'm not defending that much," he added.

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

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

Maynor Figueroa in action
Ex- Wigan Athletic defender Maynor Figueroa is playing for the team

Unreal Experience

Along with Cisse's six scores on his first game, Ireland has netted eight in 3 games for Wythenshawe, while Boyd hit 5 on his first match and Joleon Lescott, a defender by position, scored a hat-trick in one game up front.

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

One opponent, 38, who plays on the flank for Collegiate OB, faced former Latics defender Figueroa on Sunday - and had to explain his young boy who Heskey was.

He has appeared at 2 global tournaments for his country, in as well as featuring in more than two hundred top-flight matches.

"The news was going round like wildfire they had all these ex-Premier League stars," said the player.

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

"Also Emile [Heskey] got on and he's has 60-odd England appearances.

"We competed well for a good 20 mins but then we had a player dismissed and it was hard.

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

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

"Now we are eager for the return match."

We Will Still Win the Title'

The manager coaches the opposition vets team, who secured the Top Division championship last season, together with his co-manager.

"We went 1-0 up and had a

Cynthia Sims
Cynthia Sims

A digital strategist with over a decade of experience helping UK businesses optimize their online presence and drive growth through data-driven insights.