From construction manager to Fa Cup Hero: Macclesfield FC shock the Eagles 

When Eze’s bending shot past Ederson brought Crystal Palace fans into raptures, winning their first major trophy, Macclesfield fans were enjoying their own success, having won the Northern Premier League, the seventh tier of English football.  

The third-round draw put the two teams together in what was the game with the biggest gap in league position out of all the third-round ties. 

Macclesfield’s campaign began with a 3-0 victory over Atherton LR, which led them across the country and across leagues, as they played Nantwich Town, Stamford AFC, AFC Totton, and Slough Town.  

For Crystal Palace, it was to be their first game in the competition, enjoying the privilege of Premier League teams bypassing the first two rounds. 

Crystal Palace dominated the ball but could never make any real inroads into the Macclesfield defence

As the clock drew to 12.30, there was a level of tension, the Macclesfield air being filled with the raucous chants of fans whose optimism was slowly starting to bubble to the surface.

12.30- Tim Robinson flicks the coin up in the air. Macclesfield kick off.  A long ball and captain Paul Dawson goes crashing into a header and draws blood. It was the ex motorway supervisor who was the driving force behind the Macclesfield team, bossing about Adam Wharton in midfield, who recently had touts of being Real Madrid bound. Macclesfield’s relentless physical presence meant that it was simply impossible for Crystal Palace to assert any foothold in the game, and on the 43rd minute, this bore fruit. 

A Duffy free kick found its way onto Dawson’s head, whose powerful connection saw it fly past the motionless Benitez. The crowd erupted, and Glasner turned away with a look of what can only be described as a mixture of disgust and disbelief. It was an emotion that would stay on his face for the remainder of the game. 

It was only in the 90th minute that Crystal Palace showed any real quality

The second half was almost a carbon copy of the first. Crystal Palace dominated the ball but could never make any real inroads into the Macclesfield defence.  Sam Heathcoate, who returned to school on Monday to teach at his local primary school, would have probably expected to face a slightly sterner test against a team plying their trade at the very top of professional football. 

If 1 goal had sent the crowd into a frenzy in the first half, their second created what could only be described as pandemonium. There was a touch of fortune to it, with the ball fortuitously falling to Isaac Buckley Rickett inside the box, who flicked the ball around Benitez, but he and the fans would not care. Benitez would have hoped to do better, having found himself in no man’s land- especially after his promising performance against Arsenal in early December. 
 
It was only in the 90th minute that Crystal Palace showed any real quality, and by then it was too little too late. A Yeremy Pino free kick from just outside the box bent past Dearnley, but that would do little to sour the mood. 

Just 5 minutes later, Tim Robinson blew the final whistle, bringing about one of the biggest ever Fa Cup shocks and, of course, a pitch invasion.