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 with white patches persisting from 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.

Moreover, 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.

On a glorious afternoon of low winter sunshine in Cheshire, none of them were able to deal with Dawson, who set the tone at the outset in a clash of heads with Jaydee Canvot, requiring copious bandaging of his head to stem the resultant bleeding.

There was little likelihood of Dawson not insisting on continuing nevertheless, producing a classic Cup image of the semi-professional side’s skipper leading his players with his head covered in a prominent white medical dressing.

And the Macclesfield captain was immense throughout the tie, after four days earlier having helped to 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 changing room, they all followed his battling example against Palace. Subsequently, he got teased that he would not have scored his header without the bandage.

In fact it had to be adjusted by his colleague Sam Heathcote just before the goal, as it had started to slip off. If that had not been necessary then the vital score setting Macclesfield on their way to a place in FA Cup folklore might well not have happened.

Because Dawson headed the ball beautifully at the far post, back across Walter Benítez and into the bottom corner of the net, from a free-kick on the right sent in by Luke Duffy, who had once been a Crystal Palace triallist.

Glasner was understandably upset over the defending at a set-piece, but also about Kaden Rodney needlessly having conceded the foul with a poor tackle on Josh Kay to give Macclesfield the opportunity of attacking through a dead-ball delivery.

The Palace boss was even more disconsolate at the manner in which the second goal was given away, with a Macclesfield move originating once again from a free-kick, but this time in their own half and taken long by goalkeeper Max Dearnley.

Richards initially headed it clear, only for Dawson to nod the ball back into the danger area. Richards had two further attempts at headers to safety, but instead gave possession to Buckley-Ricketts, for a lay-off to D’Mani Mellor.

The Silkmen’s striker seemed to be brought down from behind by Richards, who was briefly relieved that a penalty was not signalled by the referee, Tim Robinson. However, Buckley-Ricketts picked up the ball again, seeking to dribble through towards the goal.

Borna Sosa succeeded in blocking the way, but sent his clearance to Lewis Fensome, running in from right-back to hit a first-time left-footed shot, which Benítez may have saved if Buckley-Ricketts had not managed to instinctively redirect it.

He did it with a wonderfully improvised piece of skill, resembling a ballet dancer as he twisted in mid-air, flicking out his right leg behind him towards the ball to connect with his heel and turn it across the Palace keeper into the net, almost in slow motion.

With distracting doubts about their manager’s future, low on confidence from the terrible recent run, playing now in an unfamiliar system, and badly rattled by their non-league hosts, somehow the Eagles belatedly rallied at Moss Rose.

In the 69th minute Palace had a goal disallowed when Pino was offside as Wharton crossed to the far post for a header which Christantus Uche stooped to nod in from close range in front of the bulk of the Macclesfield supporters at the Star Lane End.

Uche also angled a low shot across the goal and wide, plus later headed over the crossbar from Pino’s left wing cross. On the uncovered Silkmen Terrace, the Palace fans’ notorious drum had fallen silent by the time that they finally scored.

A foul by Mellor on Guéhi just outside the penalty box gave Pino a promising position for a free-kick, which he sent sweetly into the top corner of the goal. But by then the tie was inside the final minute and an immense upset was almost unavoidable.

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.

Macclesfield: (4-2-3-1) Dearnley - Fensome, Heathcote, Menayese, Lacey (Borthwick-Jackson 79) - Edmonson, Dawson - Duffy (Matheson 79), Kay (Dos Santos 79), Buckley-Ricketts - Mellor (Whitehead 95)

Crystal Palace: (3-4-3) Benítez - Canvot (Mitchell 46), Richards, Guéhi - Devenny (Casey 69), Wharton, Rodney (Hughes 46), Sosa - Drakes-Thomas (Johnson 46), Uche, Pino

Attendance: 5,348