Stoke City will be hoping to end this season on a high as they prepare to take on Bristol City at Ashton Gate on Good Friday.

It has turned out to be a disappointing second half of the season for Stoke, who have won only four league games since the turn of the year.

That has subsequently put a dent in their promotion hopes, with the Potters sitting 11th in the Championship and 10 points off the play-offs.

Michael O'Neill brought in plenty of young players in January, with Rabbi Matondo and Jack Clarke among those to arrive on loan and get first-team football under their belts.

But on the contrary, Stoke do also have some experienced, older players at the club who could be beneficial in helping them end the season on a high.

Here, we take a look at the top 10 oldest players to have ever featured for Stoke. Did you know who the oldest was?

Kicking off our list is the man famous for his long throws into the box.

Delap joined Stoke from Sunderland after an impressive loan spell in 2007, before spending nearly six years in Staffordshire.

In that time, he racked up over 180 league appearances for the Potters and won promotion to the Premier League in 2008.

Delap - who also came runners up with Stoke in the FA Cup in 2011 - made his final appearance for the club in a 1-1 draw with Reading in August 2012.

He was 36 years, 1 month and 12 days old at that time.

We're going back a bit here as number nine is Dave Watson.

The Nottingham-born centre-half joined Stoke from Southampton in 1982, playing 24 times in his first season with the club and helping them avoid relegation.

After playing over 40 times the following season, he helped Stoke to a steady mid table finish before leaving for Vancouver Whitecaps at the end of the campaign.

His last appearance for the Potters came in a heavy 5-1 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield. At the time, Watson was aged 36 years and 5 months old.

We're diving back a few years once again as number eight is George Eastham

Eastham joined Stoke from Arsenal back in 1966, before spending nearly eight years with the Staffordshire outfit.

He scored the winning goal in a 2-1 League Cup final victory over Chelsea in 1972 and also competed in the UEFA Cup with the Potters.

In his final appearance for Stoke - a 1-0 defeat to Liverpool in 1973 - Eastham was 36 years, 5 months and 22 days old.

He later joined East London United after several loan spells in 1975.

Moving into more recent times and in at number seven is Carlo Nash.

Nash had a loan spell at Stoke from Wigan Athletic back in 2008 before returning to the club on a permanent deal back in 2010.

The goalkeeper ended up making only a handful of appearances for Stoke in his second spell with the Potters, providing back up for the likes of Asmir Begovic and Thomas Sorensen.

In August 2010, he made his final appearance for Stoke in a 2-1 win over Shrewsbury Town in the League Cup.

At the time, he was 36 years, 11 months and 11 days old.

Keeping on the topic of goalkeepers, Andy Lonergan comes in at number six.

Stoke had a bit of an injury crisis in the early stages of this season, with Josef Bursik coming into the fold following injuries to Adam Davies, Angus Gunn and Niki Maenpaa.

Lonergan featured in a 3-1 League Cup defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in December, on a night where Gareth Bale, Ben Davies and Harry Kane netted for Jose Mourinho's side.

Lonergan was aged 37 years, 2 months and 4 days in that cup tie, and is now at West Bromwich Albion having made only one appearance for the Potters.

Again, sticking with the goalkeeping theme, Thomas Sorensen is Stoke's fifth-oldest player of all-time.

What a servant the Dane was to Stoke. The goalkeeper arrived from Aston Villa in 2008, and went on to rack up well over 100 league appearances for the Potters.

He helped them consolidate in the Premier League and helped them reach the FA Cup final in 2011, where they were defeated by Manchester City at Wembley.

He left the club in 2015 to move down under and join Melbourne City.

His final appearance for Stoke came in 2014 in a 2-1 away win over West Brom - he was 37 years, 10 months and 29 days old at the time.

Moving towards the opposite end of the pitch, Peter Crouch comes in at number four.

Crouch signed for Stoke from Tottenham in 2011, before spending eight years at the Staffordshire club.

Crouch netted 46 league goals in over 220 appearances for the Potters, before leaving for Burnley in a deal which saw Sam Vokes arrive at Stoke in 2019.

Crouch - who scored six goals as Stoke were relegated to the Premier League in 2017/18 - made his final appearance for the Potters in a 2-0 defeat to Preston in January 2019.

He was 37 years, 11 months and 27 days old at the time.

Gaining a place on the podium is former Stoke goalkeeper Ed de Goey.

After spending seven years at Chelsea, de Goey joined Stoke in 2003 and instantly became first-choice goalkeeper for the 2003/04 season.

The arrival of Steve Simonsen proved to be his downfall, though, and after falling out of favour, he was let go at the end of the 2005/06 campaign.

His final appearance for Stoke came in a 1-0 away win over Hull City in September 2005. He was 38 years, 8 months and 24 days old at the time.

Narrowly missing out on the number one spot is another former Stoke number one, Shay Given.

Given ended his playing career at Stoke after joining the club from Aston Villa in 2015.

He missed the majority of the 2015/16 campaign through injury, thought, and was used as backup to Jack Butland for most of his time in Staffordshire.

He was released by Stoke at the end of the 2016/17 season, after losing his place in the side to Lee Grant.

His final appearance came in a 4-1 away defeat to Crystal Palace in September 2016, and he was 40 years, 4 months and 29 days at the time.

In at number one is the legendary Sir Stanley Matthews.

The former England international came through the ranks at Stoke, spending 17 years at the club before joining Blackpool in 1947.

He later returned to Stoke in 1961, spending four years with the club before joining Toronto on loan in 1965.

He won two Second Division titles with Stoke in 1933 and 1963, and his final appearance for the club came in a 3-1 win over Fulham in 1965.

The man who sadly passed away aged 85 in 2000 was a remarkable 50 years and 5 days old when he played his last match for Stoke.