The Silkmen progressed to the Third Round of the Emirates FA Cup for the first time since reforming as Macclesfield FC, having beaten Slough Town by three goals to one at Arbour Park on Sunday afternoon!
John Rooney named an unchanged side from the one that drew 1-1 with Scarborough Athletic nine days ago at the Leasing.com Stadium, and debuted the all white and pink kit for the occasion.
It was a cagey opening fifteen minutes with both sides avoiding putting a foot wrong, albeit there were half chances for both sides courtesy of Danny Elliott and Tarik Gidaree, though neither were enough to really test Max Dearnley or Adam Desbois in each goal.
Rollin Menayese was kept busy as the last line of defence and was more than a match for front men Wiktor Makowski and Ruben Shakpoke.
Luke Duffy’s somewhat mishit free-kick was the Silkmen’s only other real chance inside the first forty-five minutes, though again not managing to overly trouble Desbois between the posts.
Despite making some excellent challenges, referee Adam Farmer gave Macclesfield’s first yellow card of the afternoon to Rollin Menayese having allegedly been second to the ball on one too many occasions,
The sides were level at the break with Managers John Rooney and Scott Davies having plenty to discuss to help their teams gain a vital advantage in the second period.
It was the Silkmen who made by far the brighter start to the second half with big chances for Lewis Fensome and Max Woltman, the former of which brilliantly denied by an outstretched hand from Dubois as the ball travelled in the opposite direction to his body and the latter squandering a golden chance from a couple of yards out, though couldn’t convert arguably the game’s biggest opportunity for a breakthrough so far.
Danny Elliott was keen to test the reactions of Desbois on more than one occasion, and despite not being able to get the better of him from open play, he managed to do so from the spot after 68 minutes when D’Mani Mellor was hauled down in the area by Kiki Oshilaja, who’d already been booked and was subsequently given his marching orders. Elliott calmly converted from the spot via the post to Desbois’ left to give the Silkmen the lead!
Justin Johnson was introduced in the aftermath of Elliott’s opener, replacing creative midfielder Max Woltman not long before the battle of wits continued between Elliott and Desbois, earning both of them a caution for an off the ball altercation.
Brandon Lee took the place of Luis Lacey with thirteen minutes of normal time to play, with Lacey having also been carded just minutes earlier for a late challenge.
The Silkmen were keen to see the game out in the closing stages of the regulation 90, though were unable to do so as a combination of Sam Heathcote and Rollin Menayese were judged to have upended Rebels substitute Harvey Walker as he progressed in to the area. Makowski stepped up from 12 yards and converted with four minutes left of standard time.
Luke Duffy was replaced by Isaac Buckley-Ricketts as the clock ticked over to 90 minutes, before the fourth official indicated a minimum of nine minutes added time.
Danny Whitehead sacrificed himself in to the referee’s notebook for a tactical challenge as Slough looked to go ahead deep in to added time, though were prevented on the break by the outstretched leg of Whitehead.
As we hit 100 minutes of time the referee blew to signal a further 30 minutes of extra time with the sides unable to be separated after 90.
It was just three minutes after the restart that from nowhere, James Edmondson unleashed an incredible left-footed strike from distance which dipped and dived just under the crossbar as the crucial moment, dropped beautifully in to the far top corner, leaving Desbois stranded, and sending the Silkmen faithful in to pandemonium as they went ahead for a second time in the tie.
Justin Johnson then came close to putting the contest beyond doubt with an equally sublime strike from range, which frustratingly didn’t quite drop quick enough, instead cannoning back off the crossbar.
Regan Griffiths entered the fray on 102 minutes, taking the place of Danny Whitehead, who’d pulled up with cramp just before the interval.
Macc were just fifteen minutes from the Third Round and were desperate to ensure that outcome, throwing bodies on the line at the back and throwing them forwards in attack, simultaneously holding on to a slender lead whilst also attempting to extend it.
Devastatingly, Brandon Lee hit the deck after challenging for the ball in the air, not long after returning to the side, and was unable to get back to his feet with what appeared to be a serious leg injury, treated urgently by both Club physios and on-site paramedics, who swiftly took Brandon down the tunnel on a stretcher. We send Brandon our very best wishes and will provide an update on his injury as soon as we can.
Max Dearnley produced an incredible double save in the final minute of the allocated 120, firstly from a Reiss Greenidge pile driver from range and then a follow up from point blank range to keep the Silkmen in front once again, before he was then booked for time wasting as he lined up the resulting goal kick.
Six minutes were added on at the end of extra time with both sides dragging themselves through the pain barrier to make the difference in the dying seconds of the tie.
It was substitute Regan Grifftiths whose fresh legs were able to make the desired impact from the bench, latching on to a loose ball before unleashing a vicious long-range drive, beating Desbois to his right, sealing the deal in the final minute of added time of extra time!
After a minor delay with the restart, it was eventually confirmed with 130 minutes on the lock that the Silkmen had reached the Third Round of the Emirates FA Cup and the celebrations could begin with the immense travelling support.
The Silkmen have since been allocated ball number 45 for the Third Round draw, taking place this evening (Monday 8th December) on TNT Sports at 6:40pm, also being shown live in Bar Twenty Seven where players, staff and fans can congregate to watch the draw togeether.
MOTM: James Edmondson
Attendance: 2,500
