Discover this Sunday Division Club Boasting 1,800 Premier League Matches

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

How can you improve a stellar experienced side who have secured consecutive championships, featuring a league-cup double boasting thirty wins from 32 games?

Sign a raft of former pro players that have performed at the elite tier of club and international soccer as you pursue further honors.

One Manchester team has an non-professional vets squad with 9 former top-flight players in their active roster.

Two Hundred Twenty-Two Premier League Scores, 325 International Caps

The team Veterans Over-35s are situated in south the city and play in the Cheshire-based Veterans Division Top Tier.

Their squad list this season boasts 9 ex- Premier League players, with a collective nearly 1,800 elite matches.

The star-studded squad also contains 222 top division goals and 325 international appearances.

They feature one forward, who netted 37 scores in over 100 games for his former club after joining them for £9m from Bundesliga side SC Freiburg in January 2012.

He had his debut for the team in their most recent home-field game against reigning title holders their rivals and netted all six goals in a six-two victory - including a half-hour first-half hat-trick.

The team for this season also includes former professionals such as England and Anfield forward Emile Heskey, Hull and Burnley FC winger George Boyd, Toffees forward Oumar Niasse, Wigan Athletic full-back Maynor Figueroa, City pair Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and top-flight championship victors Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

Collectively, the former top-flight footballers have claimed fifteen major honors and transferred for combined transfer sums of approximately £123m.

Well-Known Figures and Global Stars

Stephen Ireland in action
He won 6 Irish appearances, netting four scores

Ireland began playing for the team in preseason this season through good mate and current team player Blake Norton, and the ex- Irish midfielder then invited additional ex-pros, who all play in a weekly nine-a-side game, to participate.

Former Senegalese striker Niasse, who netted 12 scores in 65 Premier League matches for the Toffees and still goes to their matches at Goodison Park, also made his debut versus the opposition - who are located in Liverpool and use an Everton training kit as their strip.

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

"My mate Stephen Ireland told me 'join and play, it's a laugh'," said the striker.

"Then he told me we were facing a team from the city and the shock I had when I saw them sporting Blue kits - I say this is strange for me!

"When you still love the game and you feel you can still do it, wherever you can kick a ball, what are you going to do?

"Those fans who turn up and see are pleased and to make someone's moment if they see us playing there and to pose us questions - it's really about the joy of us having a place we can enjoy football, with organisation of course."

Such is the bench strength at Wythenshawe, Niasse had his first game at full-back.

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

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

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

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

'Surreal Scenario

Along with the forward's six goals on debut, Ireland has scored eight in three appearances for the side, while George Boyd scored 5 on his first appearance and Joleon Lescott, a defender by trade, notched a hat-trick in one match up front.

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

One opponent, thirty-eight, who plays on the wing for Collegiate OB, came up against former Wigan full-back Maynor Figueroa on the weekend - and had to explain his nine-year-old son who Heskey was.

He has played at 2 global tournaments for Honduras, in addition to playing in over two hundred top-flight matches.

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

"I felt I was a little starstruck facing him to be honest.

"Even Heskey got on and he's has over 60 English appearances.

"We held our own for a solid 20 minutes but then we had a player dismissed and it was tough.

"We really have not stopped talking about it - I was calling my mother and sibling on the way home.

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

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

We Will Still Take the Title'

Andy Kirby coaches the Collegiate veterans side, who won the Premier Division championship the previous campaign, together with Paul Maguire.

"Our team scored 1-0 ahead and had a

Todd Wilson
Todd Wilson

Tech writer and AI researcher passionate about demystifying complex technologies for a broader audience.