Discover the Weekend League Club Boasting Nearly Two Thousand Premier League Matches

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

How do you boost a excellent veteran squad that have secured consecutive titles, including a double triumph boasting thirty wins from 32 matches?

Bring in a collection of ex- pro players who have played at the top tier of club and global football as you pursue more honors.

One Manchester team boasts an amateur vets team with nine ex- Premier League players in their active lineup.

222 Premier League Scores, Three Hundred Twenty-Five International Appearances

Wythenshawe Vets Over-35s are based in southern Manchester and play in the Cheshire Veterans League Premier Tier.

Their roster this season boasts nine former top-flight footballers, with a combined nearly 1,800 Premier League games.

This elite roster also includes over 220 top division goals and 325 global appearances.

The squad feature one forward, who notched 37 scores in over 100 games for his former club after moving to them for £9m from German league club SC Freiburg in 2012.

Cisse made his debut for the team in their last home match against defending title holders their rivals and scored all six scores in a 6-2 victory - including a 32-minute first-half hat-trick.

Wythenshawe's roster for this season also features ex- pros such as English and Liverpool striker Emile Heskey, Hull and Burnley FC midfielder George Boyd, Toffees striker Oumar Niasse, Wigan Athletic full-back Maynor Figueroa, City duo Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and Premier League championship victors Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

Collectively, the former top-flight players have claimed fifteen major trophies and transferred for combined transfer fees of around £123 million.

Famous Figures and Global Players

Stephen Ireland in action
He won six Republic of Ireland caps, netting 4 goals

Ireland began playing for the side during pre-season this summer through good mate and present team teammate Blake Norton, and the former Irish player then invited other ex-pros, who all play in a weekly nine-a-side game, to join in.

Ex- Senegalese striker Niasse, who scored 12 scores in 65 top-flight matches for Everton and still goes to their home games, also had his debut against the opposition - who are based in the city and use an Everton training kit as their uniform.

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

"My friend Stephen Ireland told me 'join and have a game, it's enjoyable'," commented the striker.

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

"If you still love football and you feel you can still do it, anywhere you can kick a ball, what are you going to choose?

"The people who come and watch are pleased and to give a day if they see us playing there and to pose us questions - it's really about the joy of us having a place we can play, with structure of course."

So great is the strength in depth at the club, he made his first game at defender.

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

"I warn my defender 'I'm not staying' and that I'm just going to continue attacking.

"The movement is what I'm looking for. It's enjoyable."

Maynor Figueroa in action
Former Wigan Athletic full-back Maynor Figueroa is turning out for the team

Dreamlike' Feeling

In addition to Cisse's six goals on debut, Ireland has netted eight in 3 appearances for the side, while George Boyd scored 5 on his debut appearance and Joleon Lescott, a centre-half by position, notched a hat-trick in one match as a striker.

Wythenshawe are leading of the Top Tier with three wins from three and a GD of +19.

One opponent, thirty-eight, who features on the wing for the opposition, came up against former Wigan defender Maynor Figueroa on Sunday - and had to explain his young boy who Emile Heskey was.

Figueroa has played at 2 global tournaments for Honduras, in as well as playing in over two hundred top-flight matches.

"It was going round like a rumor they had all these former top-flight players," said the player.

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

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

"Our side held our own for a good 20 mins but then we had a man dismissed and it was hard.

"We literally haven't stopped chatting about it - I was calling my mother and sibling on the way home.

"The opponents were all friendly, shaking our hands after the game - it was like playing a bunch of normal guys.

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

We Will Still Take the Title'

Andy Kirby manages the opposition vets side, who secured the Premier Division championship last season, together with Paul Maguire.

"We scored one-nil ahead and had a

Michelle Young
Michelle Young

A passionate writer and explorer who blends creativity with real-world experiences to craft engaging stories.