Golden Oldies, Ruthless Results: Wythenshawe’s Ex‑Prem Stars Turn Sunday League into a Showcase

Sunday league? It’s starting to look like Super Sunday in the Cheshire Veterans Football League. Wythenshawe FC’s vets side have assembled a glittering cast of 17 ex-Premier League names and promptly turned the 2025/26 campaign into a procession, hoovering up a third straight title and the Veterans Cup for good measure. Between them they boast a monstrous 3,097 Premier League appearances — and you can tell. The legs may be older, but the touch, timing and nous are pure top flight.

Routs, romps and records

The tone was set late last year with a 7-1 dismantling of AFC Monton, headlined by a hat-trick from a familiar face in an unfamiliar role: former England centre-back Joleon Lescott leading the line like he’d done it all his life. Then came the avalanche: 10-1 against Radcliffe Old Boys, 6-2 over Collegiate Old Boys, and — just to underline the gulf — back-to-back 18-0 wins in January. No shock, then, that the ribbons went on the league trophy again, swiftly followed by March’s Veterans Cup.

Star turns: Premier League pedigree, Sunday morning swagger

Let’s start with the headline acts. Lescott, now part of England’s interim backroom set-up and moonlighting as a festival DJ, has reinvented himself as a pressing No 9. He nicked a hat-trick with the instincts of a life-long poacher. Career ledger: 288 Premier League appearances, 23 goals and 26 England caps across spells with Everton, Manchester City, West Brom, Aston Villa and Sunderland.

Papiss Cissé did exactly what Newcastle fans remember: goals, and plenty of them. He thumped six past Collegiate Old Boys — including a blistering 32-minute first-half treble — and finished as Wythenshawe’s top scorer with 19 in a handful of outings. For the record: 117 Premier League appearances, 37 goals, 32 senior caps.

George Boyd rolled back the years with five in the 10-1 rout of Radcliffe Old Boys. The Burnley cult hero — engine still purring — sits among the league’s top scorers. Career totals: 101 Premier League appearances, 9 goals, plus two international caps.

Stephen Ireland? The technique never left. Eight goals in two games, including a postage-stamp free-kick that reminded everyone of the mercurial midfielder who posted 19 goals in 246 Premier League appearances, with 6 international caps on his CV.

Oumar Niasse, freshly retired from the pro game, has slotted in with the ease of a man who bagged 12 in 65 Premier League games. Debut against Collegiate OB? Naturally. The Toffees colours were never far away on that one.

Big names everywhere you look

It’s not just the forwards. Emile Heskey — still criminally underappreciated by some — brings his know-how and strength after 516 Premier League appearances, 110 goals and 62 England caps, with Liverpool the headline act of a decorated career. Beside him in midfield, two-time Premier League winner Danny Drinkwater adds a champion’s calm, having lifted the title with Manchester United (2008/09) and Leicester City (2015/16) and clocked 104 Premier League games.

Out wide and at full-back, there’s quality to burn. Antonio Valencia, a serial winner at Manchester United, is back in Greater Manchester with 325 Premier League appearances and 99 international caps to his name. Marc Albrighton, a vital cog in Leicester’s fairy-tale triumph, chimed in with two goals and three assists despite arriving late in the season; his book shows 310 Premier League appearances and 20 goals. Jefferson Montero brings Swansea stripes and 66 Premier League outings.

At the back, Maynor Figueroa anchors things with the experience of 176 Premier League appearances and a staggering 181 caps for Honduras — and yes, he’s the one who scored from the halfway line against Stoke. Adrian Mariappa (149 Premier League appearances) adds nous and versatility, while Nedum Onuoha’s know-how (188 Premier League outings) makes Sunday mornings feel a breeze. Jordan Stewart chips in with Premier League pedigree from Leicester and Watford.

In goal, Keiren Westwood — 19 Premier League appearances and a Republic of Ireland international of 21 caps — keeps things tidy. Darron Gibson has resurfaced in midfield with that familiar passing range (94 Premier League appearances, 5 goals, 27 caps). Romaine Sawyers offers control and international experience in spades for St Kitts and Nevis, plus his 19 Premier League games with West Brom.

And breathe. That’s before you mention more familiar names who’ve featured: Gareth Barry, Jonjo Shelvey and Andros Townsend among an XI of former England internationals still lacing the boots. It’s a dressing room that could swap stories about title races and relegation scraps before they’ve even tied the shin pads.

Why it works: brains over brawn, patterns over panic

There’s a reason they’re making it look easy. At this level, decision-making is king. Wythenshawe’s veterans don’t rush, they rehearse. The press is triggered, not improvised; the wide men still track runners; the set-plays look straight off the training ground. When your “Sunday League” side features players who’ve lived in video rooms and Champions League environments, you tend to pull teams apart by inches, not just yards.

What next for the Sunday super-team?

Word is more summer reinforcements are coming, which should make the gap even wider. If you’re one of the Cheshire Veterans hopefuls circling this fixture on the calendar, you’ll need fresh legs, a perfect plan — and probably a keeper having the game of his life.

For fans taking a keener interest — and punters weighing form and familiar faces — here’s a useful nudge: check out our best betting sites round-up. With Wythenshawe’s veterans stacking trophies and scorelines, the smart money is on more of the same.

The Wythenshawe context

Remember, the club’s senior side plays in Division One of the non-league pyramid — the ninth tier — but it’s the veterans who are stealing the limelight. Titles, cups, 18-0s… it’s a throwback show with a modern edge. As long as the stars keep strapping the boots on, Sunday mornings around Cheshire will feel a lot like Match of the Day’s glory montage — only with a few more laughs and a lot more goals.