In a small dressing room at Manchester Metropolitan University's Platt Lane complex, the focus is absolute. Macclesfield's manager, John Rooney, and his assistant, former Arsenal striker Francis Jeffers, huddle over notes, planning their final training session. Their part-time squad, just hours away from the biggest match of their lives, prepares next door. The venue is a last-minute switch, forced by snow, a world away from the Premier League luxury their opponents enjoy. This is the reality for the lowest-ranked side left in the FA Cup, as they gear up to host the holders, Crystal Palace, in Saturday's televised third-round tie.
A Phoenix Risen: From Ashes to National League North
The club standing on the brink of this fairytale is not the Macclesfield Town of old, which collapsed under debts exceeding £500,000 in 2020. This is Macclesfield FC, the phoenix club reborn from the ashes. Backed by owner Rob Smethurst, the club has achieved three promotions in four seasons to reach the National League North, the sixth tier of English football. For manager Rooney, the journey is deeply personal. His playing career began and ended at Moss Rose, spanning both the old club and the new. He retired immediately upon taking the managerial role last July, not wanting to create friction by selecting himself. "I'm very, very proud to stand on the touchline for a team that gave me a chance as a player," Rooney says, his Scouse accent softening his quiet authority.
He recalls his own FA Cup third-round moment as a Macclesfield player in 2009, a late substitute appearance in a 1-0 defeat by his boyhood club, Everton. "I remember it like yesterday," he says, convinced he would have scored had a teammate not taken the ball off his toes. Now, he leads a squad of property developers, academy coaches, a Love Island winner, a lawyer, and a gym owner into a similar spotlight. The exception is new signing Cameron Borthwick-Jackson, a former Manchester United defender who won the FA Cup a decade ago.
Community Spirit and a £400,000 Financial Lifeline
The run to this stage has been a monumental effort on and off the pitch. The club's tournament began in September in the second qualifying round. Victories over Atherton Laburnum Rovers, Nantwich Town, Stamford, AFC Totton, and Slough Town have already earned £145,625 in prize money. The real financial boon, however, comes from Saturday's sell-out. With Palace waiving 45% of the gate receipts, Smethurst estimates the match will generate around £400,000 of income for the club, a transformative sum. This windfall allowed the club to spend £6,000 to rent protective covers for their artificial pitch midweek, underlining their determination that the show go on.
The community's role has been pivotal. Earlier this week, scores of volunteers and staff worked late into the night to clear snow so a crucial league match could proceed. That spirit defines the club. "People have worked tirelessly, given everything to the club since the reformation," says forward Danny Elliot, hat-trick hero in the first round. "It's a football club that puts its arms around the players and the community." This bond made the recent ticket scramble, where an estimated 2,500 fans queued for up to five hours in freezing conditions for just 800 remaining tickets, both a testament to loyalty and a logistical lesson. Smethurst admits, "We'll learn from it."
A Poignant Shadow and a National Spotlight
The build-up has not been without profound sadness. The squad will play with the memory of 21-year-old forward Ethan McLeod, who died in a car accident in December after scoring in an earlier qualifying round. His image remains draped from the main stand at Moss Rose. "He will remain in our hearts, in our memories and as part of this football club," Elliot says. "He was a very special person."
On Saturday, the nation will watch. The match is live on BBC One and TNT Sports. Key sponsor Duck and Cover has kitted out the entire squad in new arrival outfits for the occasion. For goalkeeper Max Dearnley, so anxious not to miss out he double-checks his recovery with the physio, and for defender Lewis Fensome, who had never been beyond the qualifying rounds before this season, it is the pinnacle. As the players signed shirts for sponsors after a sharp training session, the excitement was palpable. For Macclesfield FC, a club that didn't exist four years ago, this is more than a football match. It is a celebration of resilience, community, and the enduring magic of the FA Cup.
