Introduce the Weekend Division Squad Boasting Nearly Two Thousand English Top Division Appearances

Wythenshawe Vets bench during a match
The substitutes for the team Vets in a six-two win against their opponents on 19 October (from left to right) - one player, another, a teammate, Blake Norton, Maynor Figueroa, Dean Warburton and Emile Heskey

What do you enhance a outstanding experienced side who have secured consecutive championships, including a double triumph boasting thirty wins from thirty-two games?

Sign a raft of former professionals that have performed at the elite tier of club football and global soccer as you aim for further honors.

One Greater Manchester side fields an amateur vets squad with 9 former top-flight players in their active squad.

222 Top Division Scores, Three Hundred Twenty-Five Global Appearances

Wythenshawe Vets Over-35s are situated in south Manchester and play in the Cheshire Vets Division Premier Division.

Their roster this season features 9 former Premier League footballers, with a total nearly 1,800 elite appearances.

The star-studded squad also boasts 222 Premier League scores and 325 global appearances.

The squad include one forward, who scored thirty-seven goals in 117 appearances for his former club after signing for them for £9m from German league side Freiburg in 2012.

He made his debut for Wythenshawe in their most recent home game versus reigning title holders Collegiate Old Boys and scored all six scores in a six-two victory - including a 32-minute first-half hat-trick.

The roster for this campaign also features ex- pros such as England and Liverpool forward Emile Heskey, Hull and Burnley winger George Boyd, Toffees striker Oumar Niasse, Wigan defender Maynor Figueroa, City duo Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and top-flight championship winners Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

In total, the former top-flight footballers have secured 15 major honors and transferred for combined transfer sums of around £123 million.

Well-Known Figures and International Players

Stephen Ireland in action
Stephen Ireland won 6 Republic of Ireland caps, netting four goals

Stephen Ireland began playing for the side during preseason this summer through close friend and current team player Blake Norton, and the ex- Republic of Ireland midfielder then invited other former professionals, who all compete in a midweek small-sided game, to participate.

Ex- Senegalese striker Oumar Niasse, who scored 12 scores in sixty-five Premier League matches for Everton and still attends their home games, also had his debut versus Collegiate OB - who are based in the city and wear an Blue warm-up gear as their uniform.

Oumar Niasse playing for Everton
He played for the club from 2016 and 2020

"A friend Stephen Ireland said 'come and play, it's enjoyable'," said Niasse.

"Then he told me we were playing a team from Liverpool and the surprise I had when I saw them sporting Blue shirts - I thought this is strange for me!

"If you still enjoy the game and you feel you can still do it, anywhere you can kick a ball, what are you going to do?

"Those fans who come and see are happy and to give someone's day if they watch us playing there and to pose us queries - it's more like the pleasure of us getting somewhere we can enjoy football, with organisation of course."

Such is the strength in depth at Wythenshawe, he had his first game at defender.

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

"I tell my centre-back 'I'm not staying' and that I'm just going to keep attacking.

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

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

'Surreal Scenario

Along with Cisse's six scores on debut, Stephen Ireland has netted 8 in three appearances for Wythenshawe, while Boyd scored 5 on his debut match and Joleon Lescott, a defender by trade, notched a triple in one game up front.

The team are leading of the Top Tier with 3 wins from 3 and a GD of plus nineteen.

One opponent, 38, who plays on the wing for Collegiate OB, faced former Latics defender Figueroa on Sunday - and had to tell his young son who Emile Heskey was.

Figueroa has appeared at two global tournaments for Honduras, in as well as playing in more than 200 Premier League matches.

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

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

"Even Emile [Heskey] got on and he's got over 60 England appearances.

"Our side competed well for a good 20 mins but then we had a man sent off and it was hard.

"We literally have not ceased talking about it - I was calling 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 bunch of normal fellas.

"Now we are eager for the second match."

'We'll Still Win the League'

The manager manages the opposition vets side, who secured the Premier Tier championship last season, together with Paul Maguire.

"We went 1-0 up and had a

Amber Klein
Amber Klein

Wildlife biologist and conservationist with over a decade of experience studying sloths in Central America.