Meet this Sunday Division Squad Featuring 1,800 Top-Flight Appearances

Wythenshawe Vets bench during a match
This substitutes for Wythenshawe Vets during a six-two victory against their opponents on October 19th (from left to right) - Oumar Niasse, Papiss Cisse, Marcel Edwards, Blake Norton, Maynor Figueroa, Dean Warburton and Emile Heskey

How do you boost a stellar experienced squad that have secured consecutive titles, featuring a double triumph boasting 30 victories from thirty-two matches?

Bring in a collection of former professionals who have performed at the elite tier of club and international football as you aim for more honors.

A Manchester side fields an non-professional vets team with 9 ex- Premier League footballers in their current roster.

Two Hundred Twenty-Two Top Division Goals, 325 International Caps

The team Veterans Over-35s are situated in south Manchester and compete in the Cheshire Vets League Top Division.

Their lineup this season boasts nine former Premier League players, with a combined over 1,800 top-flight games.

The star-studded team also includes over 220 top division goals and over 320 global appearances.

The squad feature Papiss Cisse, who notched thirty-seven scores in over 100 appearances for his former club after moving to them for £9m from Bundesliga club SC Freiburg in 2012.

Cisse had his debut for Wythenshawe in their last home game against reigning champions their rivals and netted every one of the six scores in a six-two win - including a 32-minute first-half triple.

The team for this season also includes former professionals such as England and Anfield striker Emile Heskey, Hull and Burnley FC winger George Boyd, Everton striker Oumar Niasse, Wigan Athletic defender Maynor Figueroa, City duo Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and top-flight title winners Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

In total, the ex- Premier League footballers have won fifteen big honors and transferred for combined transfer sums of around £123 million.

Famous Figures and Global Players

Stephen Ireland in action
He earned 6 Irish caps, scoring four scores

Ireland began playing for the team during pre-season this season through good mate and current team teammate Blake Norton, and the former Republic of Ireland midfielder then invited other ex-pros, who all compete in a weekly nine-a-side game, to join in.

Ex- Senegal striker Oumar Niasse, who netted 12 scores in 65 top-flight games for Everton and still attends their matches at Goodison Park, also made his debut against Collegiate OB - who are based in the city and use an Everton warm-up gear as their strip.

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

"My friend Stephen said 'join and have a game, it's a laugh'," said the striker.

"After that he informed me we were facing a side from the city and the shock I had when I saw them sporting Blue shirts - I thought this is wrong for me!

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

"Those fans who turn up and see are pleased and to make a moment if they watch us playing there and to ask us questions - it's more like the joy of us having a place we can play, with structure of course."

Such is the bench strength at Wythenshawe, Niasse had his first game at defender.

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

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

"The running is what I'm after. It's enjoyable."

Maynor Figueroa in action
Ex- Wigan defender Maynor Figueroa is turning out for Wythenshawe

Dreamlike' Feeling

In addition to the forward's six scores on debut, Ireland has netted eight in 3 appearances for Wythenshawe, while George Boyd hit five on his first appearance and Lescott, a centre-half by position, notched a hat-trick in one match up front.

Wythenshawe are top of the Premier Tier with 3 wins from 3 and a GD of +19.

Paul Barrow, thirty-eight, who plays on the wing for Collegiate OB, faced ex- Latics defender Maynor Figueroa on the weekend - and had to tell his nine-year-old boy who Heskey was.

Figueroa has played at 2 World Cups for Honduras, in addition to featuring in more than two hundred top-flight games.

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

"I felt I was a bit awestruck facing Figueroa to be honest.

"Also Heskey got on and he's got 60-odd England appearances.

"We held our own for a good twenty mins but then we had a player dismissed and it was tough.

"We literally have not stopped talking 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 facing a bunch of normal fellas.

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

We Will Still Win the Title'

Andy Kirby manages the Collegiate vets team, who secured the Top Tier title last season, together with Paul Maguire.

"We scored 1-0 up and had a

Walter Perry
Walter Perry

A tech journalist and digital strategist with over a decade of experience covering emerging technologies and consumer electronics across Europe.