LEIGH MP Andy Burnham was unable to transfer his political prowess to the football pitch when his House of Commons team was thrashed 11-0 by the Iraqi national side.

Mr Burnham played as the parliamentary centre-forward in a match described by the Labour MP as a "monumental mismatch."

The Iraqi team, ranked 44th in the world, was invited by charity Truce International, backed by England manager Sven Goran Eriksson, which believes that the world's troubles could be solved by playing a game of football.

On a sunny pitch in South-West London where the Iraqis showed their footballing pedigree against an overweight looking Parliamentary XI the Iraqis turned on the skill and were 8-0 up by half-time, and when they netted another three goals the referee blew the final whistle -- nearly 20 minutes before the game was due to end.

Life-long Everton fan Mr Burnham said: "I had a few shots against the Iraqis but the service was not as good as I expected.

"It was a really nice experience to play against such a great bunch of lads. It's fantastic that they are now allowed to travel freely abroad."