Crystal Palace suffer FA Cup’s greatest ever shock, with defeat by non-league part-timers Macclesfield

Macclesfield (1) 2 v Crystal Palace (0) 1

Dawson 43

Buckley-Ricketts 60

Pino 90

By Kaz Mochlinski at Moss Rose

FA Cup

Third Round

Crystal Palace succumbed to the greatest shock in the history of the FA Cup, with the holders being knocked out of this season’s competition by non-league part-timers as Macclesfield secured a famous 2-1 win at Moss Rose.

It was the first ever victory for a sixth tier team over a Premier League opponent, and the 117-place gap in the English football pyramid between the two sides was the biggest which has been overcome for a giant-killing.

Paul Dawson crucially got the opening goal for the National League North side just before half-time, and Isaac Buckley-Ricketts doubled the lead on the hour. Yéremy Pino’s free-kick gave Palace very late hope, but ultimately it was not enough.

Macclesfield’s first score came from a set-piece - stretching the Eagles’ dismal recent run of goals conceded that way in all competitions to 10 out of 11. The second was described by the Crystal Palace manager, Oliver Glasner, as “slapstick”.

He made a triple substitution at half-time, and changed the side’s formation from 3-4-3 to 4-2-3-1, seeking to increase their attacking efforts. His players never stopped trying. But they could not escape from being caught in the cup shock of a lifetime.

Glasner’s measured view was that a top flight team should still score five or so goals to survive such a match-up, even when the opposition are playing the game of their lives on an astroturf pitch left partially white by overnight frost.

However, Palace have been inexorably left exhausted by their first-ever participation in European football this season, plus the punishing domestic schedule around Christmas. This was now their ninth straight match without a win.

Glasner had some very significant players unavailable against Macclesfield. Jean-Philippe Mateta was the latest addition to the list with a knee injury. And there was already no Ismaïla Sarr, Daniel Muñoz, Daichi Kamada, or Jefferson Lerma.

Maxence Lacroix and Dean Henderson remained unused subs, but Tyrick Mitchell, Will Hughes and Brennan Johnson were all brought on to join Marc Guéhi, Chris Richards, Adam Wharton, Justin Devenny and Pino, who were among the starting XI.

None of them were unable on an afternoon of low winter sunshine in Cheshire to deal with Dawson, who set the tone early on in a clash of heads with Jaydee Canvot, coming back after having his head bandaged to stem the blood loss.

The Macclesfield captain was immense throughout the tie, after four days earlier having helped sweep snow off the pitch, plus the day before the contest driving around the area to deliver the squad’s new tracksuits to each player.

Like all his teammates, Dawson has a day job, and trains twice a week. Beloved in the dressing room, they were delighted to follow him into battle. Subsequently, he got teased that he would not have scored his header without the bandage.

The Magic of the Cup was present at Wembley in May to carry Palace as the underdogs to their first ever trophy with a final success over Manchester City. This time it came to Moss Rose, and the Eagles were the victims.

For Macclesfield, it was unforgettable.