‘Brentford will come all guns blazing… but you saw what we did to Palace’: Macclesfield’s mission to pull off the greatest FA Cup upset (again) – a foolproof set-piece routine, the plan to get after Jordan Henderson  and a boost from Man United

They were selling half-and-half scarves outside the Co-op and Lazy Joe’s Cafe when fans arrived at Macclesfield FC in the teeming rain on Tuesday night.

Leamington were in town but Brentford was the name on the other half of those scarves, and ‘Giantkillers’ was printed on the back. More than a month on from that seismic win over Crystal Palace, dreams of FA Cup glory are stirring in this quiet corner of Cheshire again.

While Macclesfield were beating a team at the foot of the National League North before playing in the fourth round for the first time, Brentford were preparing to draw 1-1 with Premier League and Champions League leaders Arsenal on Thursday night.

To put that in perspective: Macclesfield made history by beating Palace, a team 117 places above them in the football pyramid, and the FA Cup holders no less. Brentford sit another four places higher. Surely Macclesfield can’t repeat – surpass even – the greatest FA Cup upset ever? Beating Palace catapulted manager John Rooney out of his brother Wayne’s shadow, but he can’t do it again, can he?

Probably not. But Macclesfield won when the final whistle went against Palace, and they have been winning ever since.

Australian channel ABC were filming at the club for three days this week. There has been interest from CNN and ESPN. Sweden. Croatia. When Rooney held his pre-match press conference on Thursday afternoon, he had the FA Cup perched behind him and a reporter from L’Equipe sat in front. Safe to say, that doesn’t happen around here very often.

Isaac Buckley-Ricketts’ goal was decisive as the National League North side beat their Premier League opponents 2-1

Beating Palace catapulted manager John Rooney (left) out of his brother Wayne’s shadow, but he can’t do it again, can he?

The Cup run is attracting interest from new investors and has already earned the club – which just six years ago was bought out of administration on Rightmove – around £800,000.

After BBC screened the Palace game live, and former Manchester United and England captain Rooney was there as a pundit to witness his younger brother John’s finest hour, TNT Sports are paying to broadcast the Brentford tie on Monday night in front of another 5,300 sellout crowd.

It means Macclesfield will be in the fifth-round draw, which is going to be made at the Leasing.com Stadium just before kick-off. Rooney will make the short journey from home as a fan this time.

It’s easy to write off Macclesfield’s chances. The odds are heavily stacked against them again. Brentford should have learned from Palace’s mistakes and will have prepared to play on the AstroTurf pitch if they have any sense. They won’t underestimate non-League opponents with plenty of experience at a higher level, despite this being only their fifth season since the phoenix club relaunched.

Defender Cameron Borthwick-Jackson made the majority of his 14 appearances for United in the 2015-16 season alongside Rooney, and is now establishing himself with the Silkmen.

D’Mani Mellor also came through the ranks at United and made his debut in a 2019 Europa League tie against Astana in Kazakhstan alongside his year-group friends Mason Greenwood, Angel Gomes and James Garner.

‘I’m in touch with them all,’ says Mellor, a 25-year-old striker. ‘That group is very, very close. We’re like a little family. There was nine of us that got brought through and that doesn’t normally happen.

‘We’re always still there for each other. Everyone’s so far apart, but we all stay in contact. I got loads of messages after the Palace game. “Well done, we’re proud of you”. It’s nice to see the support.

D’Mani Mellor (back row, second right) came through at Manchester United with the likes of Mason Greenwood, Tahith Chong, Angel Gomes, James Garner and Brandon Williams

Macclesfield will be in the fifth-round draw, which is going to be made at the Leasing.com Stadium just before kick-off

‘Everyone has a different path. So just because I’m here now doesn’t mean I can’t get back to where I could be.

‘You’ve seen the likes of Jamie Vardy. He was in non-League and he got a move at 25. There’s loads of players – Antoine Semenyo. It’s never over and all it takes is a good season, right time, right place and a bit of luck.

‘I’ll be forever grateful that I got the opportunity as a youngster to play for my boyhood club. After the game, it was very emotional. I was just proud of myself and my family. You dream about these things so when you achieve it, it’s like: “Wow, you actually did it!” That will be cherished for the rest of my life.’

More emotional than Macclesfield beating Palace?

‘That was a surreal moment as well and also a bit emotional because my family got to witness it,’ adds Mellor, who has a podcast with Ryan Hopper, a private coach who has worked with the likes of Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford. ‘The impact of the game for the club has been amazing. It’s reached so many different places. It will be with us forever, so it’s something to tell your kids.’

Another player trying to work his way back up through the levels is Isaac Buckley-Ricketts, the scorer of Macclesfield’s decisive second goal against Palace, who played with Jadon Sancho at Manchester City and Mason Mount when England won the Under 19s Euros in 2017.

‘If your mates go on to be successful, it doesn’t necessarily mean you’ve done something wrong or you weren’t good enough,’ says Buckley-Ricketts, a 27-year-old forward who also goes by the name Mudboy LM and dropped his first music project on streaming platforms on Friday.

‘I’ve been in good situations but don’t let other people being in a higher position than you in football knock your confidence or make you think it’s impossible to reach certain heights again. Just keep playing until your legs don’t work.’

Buckley-Ricketts scores the second goal for Macclesfield against Palace – how many times has he watched it back? ‘About a million!’

The two goalscorers, Buckley-Ricketts and captain Paul Dawson celebrate after the giantkilling

How many times has he seen his winning goal back in Macclesfield’s 2-1 win over Palace? ‘About a million! Anywhere you look, it’s getting replayed. Family members and friends are sending it over. Even when I scored it didn’t feel real. As I’m celebrating, it was like, really? You can hear the roar of the crowd and it’s a dreamlike feeling.’

Captain Paul Dawson was the scorer of Macclesfield’s first goal, getting his bandaged head on the end of Luke Duffy’s freekick after a clash with Palace defender Jayde Canvot straight from kick-off. It’s a well-rehearsed routine and one that Dawson warns will be used again in the Brentford tie. ‘We do it every week, so we’ll do exactly the same,’ says Dawson. ‘We won’t be changing anything.’

The combative skipper will try to get in Jordan Henderson’s face, just as he enjoyed trash-talking Palace’s £100million-rated Adam Wharton in the last round. ‘That’s what I do every week, no matter who we’re playing. I’m not going to change for anyone,’ adds Dawson.

‘It’ll be nice to come up against an England international like Jordan Henderson on Monday, and a pleasure to play on the same pitch.’ Will Henderson feel the same? ‘I hope not because I can’t wait to play against him!’

In one of those twists of fate, his team-mate Duffy spent a fortnight in London in 2020 on trial at both Brentford and Palace.

‘It’s crazy isn’t it? Almost like it’s written,’ says the 26-year-old former scaffolder and ABA amateur boxing champion who worked out at the gym owned by the Rooneys’ uncle Richie in Croxteth.

‘The week before the trial at Brentford, I got knocked out playing for Salford against Oldham going up for a header and was concussed for two weeks. Honestly, I was horrendous. It was like I forgot how to play football! Hopefully I can show them how far I’ve come on Monday.

‘I watched Brentford against Arsenal and they can hurt you from everywhere. But the pressure is on them. We can just go out and play with freedom and no fear.’

Dawson (centre) scored the opener and insists they will not be changing anything from their usual game plan against Brentford in the fourth round

The combative skipper will try to get in Jordan Henderson’s face, just as he enjoyed trash-talking Palace’s £100million-rated Adam Wharton in the last round

Reflecting on the Palace win, Duffy adds: ‘We celebrated for a couple of hours then I went home, ordered a takeaway and chilled. Honestly, I just felt like it was a little bit too much, the whole occasion. I just wanted to sit down and really take it all in. It was so surreal.’

It wasn’t the dream ending for all the Macclesfield players. Star striker Danny Elliott ruptured a cruciate ligament in his knee against Buxton on Boxing Day, and found out that his season was over the day before the Palace game. Even so, he was named on the bench but then withdrawn from Rooney’s squad after the warm-up.

‘If we were 5-0 down and I was able to play five minutes, then I would have loved to have had that before my surgery,’ says Elliott. ‘I was devastated in that moment when I found out on the Friday. You don’t want to believe it.

‘I thought if I can just get through a few minutes on Saturday, because it’s a dream come true, I’m 30 and it’s the biggest game I’ve ever played in. I was trying to do anything to just have that moment on the pitch for myself and my family, but it wasn’t to be.

‘There’s a lot of young boys here, and hopefully me being a bit older, I can try and support them and help them. It’s a team that has grown a lot this season, especially with losing a team-mate.’

Elliott was, of course, referring to Ethan McLeod who tragically died in a car crash on the M1 travelling back from a game at Bedford in December. Players and staff travelled to Wolverhampton for an emotional funeral last week. ‘It would be silly to say we can’t beat Brentford because we beat a team like Crystal Palace,’ adds Elliott. ‘I’ve no doubt that Ethan will be watching over us again.’

Meanwhile, Josh Kay will miss the game through suspension after being harshly booked for a foul on Palace’s Yeremy Pino.

‘I didn’t have a clue until the gaffer told me the next day,’ says Kay. ‘I started looking at the FA rules online. You’re only allowed two yellow cards from the first round to the quarter-final. It’s a bit tight, isn’t it?’

The tribute to Ethan McLeod, the Macclesfield player who tragically lost his life in a car crash in December

Josh Kay celebrates at full time – only to be told soon afterwards that he is suspended for the fourth round due to picking up two yellow cards in the FA Cup

Kay will be in the stands along with Elliott, Rooney and several thousand fans desperately hoping Macclesfield can somehow be giantkillers for the second round in a row.

‘I think all the boys believe we can make history again,’ says Mellor. ‘Underdogs, same situation, so we’ve got nothing to lose.

‘Brentford will come with all guns blazing. But you saw what happened to Crystal Palace, didn’t you? So if they don’t fancy it, I’m pretty sure we will.

‘I don’t think we’ll change our game. We’ll just go at them 100 per cent and try to make it as horrible as possible.’