Key events<\/p>\n
Show key events only<\/p>\n
Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature<\/p>\n
25 min: Wharton plonks a cross-field pass on the edge of his own box onto the chest of Luke Duffy, but the Macclesfield<\/a> midfielder snatches at the resultant volley and drags his effort well wide.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 24 min: \u201cThink about it!\u201d comes a shout from the home stands. \u201cTHINK ABOUT IT!\u201d Good advice for us all.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 23 min: At the other end Fensome whacks a hopeful cross into the Palace box but Ben\u00edtez gathers comfortably.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 21 min: Close! Typically, just as I mention that they\u2019re not threatening, Palace come about as close as they have to scoring. Kaden Rodney swings the ball in from the left but Jo\u00e9l Drakes-Thomas misses with an attempted glancing header and Dearnley is able to gather.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 20 min: Palace aren\u2019t exactly battering on the door here. They\u2019re in control, of course, but the home side are largely keeping them at arm\u2019s length.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 18 min: There\u2019s a couple of other early Cup kick-offs and a shock is not on the cards at Molineux \u2013 Wolves are already 2-0 up against Shrewsbury. Meanwhile, the Shrews\u2019 fellow League Two-ers Cheltenham are holding Leicester 0-0.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 17 min: Here\u2019s Dom Booth from his perch in the stands: \u201cA couple of players going down injured in the early stages definitely benefits Macclesfield<\/a>. The longer this stays 0-0, the more belief will spread around this small ground. The Silkmen have looked up to the task so far and the home crowd have been vocal to say the least. One aspect that has surprised me has been Macclesfield\u2019s reluctance to throw it long when inside the Palace half. Surely set-pieces are a key opportunity today?\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 15 min: Macclesfield<\/a> have their first shot on target \u2013 Lacey\u2019s effort from long range, after a couple of weak Palace clearances, is straight at Ben\u00edtez.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 14 min: Edmonson sends a free-kick from the Macclesfield<\/a> left into the mixer, but it\u2019s slightly mis-hit and bobbles harmlessly across goal.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 13 min: Chance! And a proper chance too, for the Premier League side. Sosa and Uche combine to put Yeremy Pino through, but he scuffs his effort wide of the near post from close range.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 12 min: Heathcote takes that advice on board and launches the ball forward in the direction of Josh Kay. The ball bounces off the forward and out for a goal kick.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a007.28 EST<\/p>\n 11 min: Macclesfield<\/a>, for their part, are trying to get the ball down to play, which is admirable. Though I do wonder in these situations if the old gerrit int box approach is more likely to reap rewards.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 10 min: Devenny swings in a dangerous cross from the Palace right, but a Macclesfield<\/a> head is there to meet it.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 8 min: Dawson\u2019s head wound has opened up again and he needs a bit more treatment. It\u2019s all been a bit stop-start so far.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 7 min: The low winter sun is casting long shadows on the pitch, but not long enough for Macclesfield<\/a> goalkeeper Max Dearnley, who has donned his cap.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 5 min: Uche tumbles looking for a free-kick but nothing doing as far as the referee is concerned. You can really see the difference in the surface from the way the ball bounces \u2013 might take a bit of getting used to for the Palace players.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 4 min: A first touch for Macclesfield<\/a> goalkeeper Max Dearnley as Christantus Uche looks to pressure the home defence.<\/p>\n Macclesfield keeer Max Dearnley, sporting a very necessary cap, hoicks the ball clear from the approaching Chrisantus Uche. Photograph: Ryan Browne\/ShutterstockShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a007.29 EST<\/p>\n 3 min: Both are patched up and OK to continue, as Palace get their collective foot on the ball for the first time.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 1 min: Jaydee Canvot and Paul Dawson go up for a header as the ball is pumped towards the Palace box and there\u2019s a brief delay as they both need treatment for a clash of heads.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Peep! After a brief delay to tidy up a cone left behind from the warm-up (!), Macclesfield<\/a> get the game under way on the 4G surface.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Click-clack, click-clack \u2026 Out come the players into the Cheshire sunshine.<\/p>\n Fans shield their eyes from the sun. Photograph: Michael Regan\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a007.37 EST<\/p>\n Oliver Glasner is having a brief pre-match chat with the BBC. \u201cIt\u2019s clear that we\u2019re here to win the game,\u201d he says of his Palace lineup.<\/p>\n And here\u2019s Macclesfield\u2019s John Rooney:\u201cSince the club reformed we\u2019ve done well in the leagues, pushing up the football pyramid, but we\u2019ve never really had that FA Cup run, and one thing we spoke about in the summer is can we give the fans something to cheer going into the FA Cup, and for us to get to the third round and get drawn against the holders, you can see what it means to them today. <\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s such an exciting game for the whole club, it\u2019s been hard keeping the players calm and keeping their feet on the ground and getting them ready.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a007.15 EST<\/p>\n The BBC\u2019s Mark Chapman says it\u2019s \u201cbring a family member to work day\u201d as Wayne Rooney stands next to his brother, Macclesfield<\/a> boss John Rooney, for a pre-match chat on the pitch.<\/p>\n The Rooney brothers have a chit chat pitchside. Photograph: Martin Rickett\/PAShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a007.32 EST<\/p>\n Dominic Booth is our reporter at Moss Rose today, and he\u2019s been soaking in the pre-match atmosphere:<\/p>\n Macclesfield are ready for their day in the FA Cup third round sun, against the cup holders Crystal Palace, no less. Walking from the railway station to the modest surroundings of Moss Rose \u2013 now the Leasing.com stadium \u2013 before kick-off, there was a palpable buzz in the air. Fans have been buying match scarves in their hundreds, the bars and food kiosks are packed and TV trucks are packing the car park. This is Macclesfield\u2019s first game against Premier League opposition since their rebirth in 2020. As a former EFL club, they used to be semi-regulars in the third round. These days, occasions like this are to be treasured and everyone is rightly making the most of it. That Palace have included three of their FA Cup winning lineup \u2013 Wharton, Gu\u00e9hi and Richards \u2013 makes it all the more tantalising for the hosts.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a006.58 EST<\/p>\n Palace\u2019s last game in the FA Cup<\/a>? It was a doozy:<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Once upon a time in third-round games, the state of the lower league\/non-league pitch would be thought of as The Great Leveller. And you could hope to throw in a bit of January wind and rain. But the Moss Rose surface is in fine fettle and there\u2019s barely a cloud in the Cheshire sky:<\/p>\n A groundsman prepares the pitch at Moss Rose. Photograph: Alex Livesey\/Danehouse\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a007.08 EST<\/p>\n The lineups<\/p>\n Macclesfield: Dearnley, Fensome, Menayese, Dawson, Buckley-Ricketts, Mellor, Duffy, Heathecote, Lacey, Kay, Edmondson. Subs: Callister, Matheson, Griffiths, Elliott, Dos Santos, Whitehead, Woltman, Stone, Borthwick-Jackson.<\/p>\n Crystal Palace: Ben\u00edtez, Canvot, Gu\u00e9hi, Richards, Sosa, Rodney, Wharton, Devenny, Pino, Drakes-Thomas, Uche. Subs: Henderson, Mitchell, Lacroix, King, Benamar, Hughes, Marsh, Casey, Johnson.<\/p>\n Oliver Glasner and his team arrive at the stadium. Photograph: Conor Molloy\/ProSports\/ShutterstockShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a006.25 EST<\/p>\n Preamble<\/p>\n Hello all. FA Cup third-round Saturday kicks off with a proper bit of Cup romance \u2013 the lowest-ranked team left in the competition, Macclesfield from the National League North, where they sit 14th, sandwiched between Chester and Telford, against the holders, Premier League behemoths (in this context at least) Crystal Palace<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Silkmen took Sheffield Wednesday to a replay on their last trip to the third round, in 2013-14, but they were a Conference side back then, only a year or two out of the Football League (and they\u2019ve been wound up and phoenixed since then).<\/p>\n For the full back story, here\u2019s Sam Dalling\u2019s excellent piece from behind the scenes at Moss Rose:<\/p>\n