Discover the Sunday League Squad With 1,800 Premier League Matches

Wythenshawe Vets bench during a match
This substitutes for the team Veterans in a six-two win against their opponents on October 19th (from left to right) - one player, Papiss Cisse, Marcel Edwards, Blake Norton, Maynor Figueroa, Dean Warburton and Emile Heskey

What can you enhance a stellar veteran side that have won consecutive titles, including a double triumph boasting thirty victories from 32 matches?

Recruit a raft of former professionals that have performed at the elite level of club and international soccer as you pursue additional honors.

A Manchester team boasts an non-professional veterans team with nine ex- top-flight players in their present roster.

Two Hundred Twenty-Two Top Division Scores, 325 Global Appearances

The team Vets Over 35s are located in south Manchester and compete in the Cheshire-based Veterans Division Top Tier.

The squad list this campaign boasts nine ex- top-flight players, with a combined nearly 1,800 top-flight appearances.

This elite roster also contains 222 top division scores and over 320 global caps.

They feature one forward, who netted thirty-seven goals in 117 games for Newcastle United after moving to them for £9m from German league side SC Freiburg in 2012.

He made his debut for the team in their most recent home match against reigning title holders their rivals and scored all six scores in a 6-2 win - including a half-hour opening period triple.

The squad for this season also includes former pros such as English and Anfield forward Emile Heskey, Hull and Burnley FC midfielder George Boyd, Everton striker Oumar Niasse, Wigan 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 won 15 significant honors and transferred for combined transfer fees of about £123m.

Famous Names and International Stars

Stephen Ireland in action
Stephen Ireland earned 6 Republic of Ireland appearances, scoring four goals

Stephen Ireland started turning out for the team in preseason this summer through good friend and current team player Blake Norton, and the ex- Irish midfielder then asked other ex-pros, who all compete in a weekly small-sided game, to participate.

Ex- Senegal forward Niasse, who netted 12 scores in 65 top-flight matches for the Toffees and still goes to their home games, also had his first appearance versus the opposition - who are located in Liverpool and wear an Blue training kit as their strip.

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

"My friend Stephen said 'join and have a game, it's enjoyable'," commented Niasse.

"After that he told me we were facing a side from Liverpool and the surprise I had when I saw them sporting Blue shirts - I say this is strange for me!

"When you still enjoy football and you feel you can still do it, wherever you can kick a ball, what are you going to do?

"The fans who come and watch are happy and to give a day if they see us playing there and to ask us questions - it's really about the pleasure of us getting a place we can play, with organisation of course."

Such is the bench strength at Wythenshawe, he made his debut at defender.

"That's a little unusual but then, I love running and just move forward - I'm not staying back that much," he said.

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

"The 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

Dreamlike' Feeling

In addition to the forward's 6 scores on debut, Stephen Ireland has scored 8 in three appearances for Wythenshawe, while George Boyd hit five on his first appearance and Lescott, a defender by position, notched a hat-trick in one game up front.

Wythenshawe are top of the Premier Division with three victories from 3 and a GD of +19.

One opponent, thirty-eight, who features on the wing for Collegiate OB, faced ex- Latics full-back Figueroa on the weekend - and had to tell his young boy who Emile Heskey was.

Figueroa has played at two World Cups for his country, in addition to featuring in more than two hundred top-flight matches.

"It was spreading like wildfire they had all these former top-flight stars," said the player.

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

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

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

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

"They were all dead sound, shaking our hands after the match - it was like facing a bunch of regular guys.

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

We Will Still Take the League'

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

"Our team went one-nil ahead and had a

Joy Velasquez
Joy Velasquez

A tech enthusiast and science writer with a passion for uncovering emerging trends and sharing knowledge through engaging content.

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