FA Cup preview: Macclesfield vs Crystal Palace – Luke Duffy’s lofty ambitions are clear!

By Tony Bugby

Former scaffolder Luke Duffy will be hoping Macclesfield FC scale new heights and cause an FA Cup shock of lofty proportions by defeating holders Crystal Palace.

When the draw was made for the third-round tie, which is being televised live at the Leasing.com Stadium on Saturday with a 12.15pm kick-off, it resonated more with Duffy than any of his team-mates.

It was back in 2020 when the 26-year-old midfielder was playing for Lower Breck, who were then competing at Step 6, had trials at both Palace and Brentford.

Though neither led to a move, they gave Duffy, who has won two promotions with the Silkmen, an insight into life at the top level.

Good experience

“I trained with the U23s, but we used the first-team pitches,” he told The NLP of the week he spent at Palace.

“Brentford were in the Championship at the time. I was with the ‘B’ squad who trained with the first team.

“I got to train with the likes of Ollie Watkins and Bryan Mbeumo, which was a really good experience – I learned what it takes to reach that level.”

This is the furthest Duffy has reached in the FA Cup and the prospect of pitting his wits against Premier League defenders excites him.

He said: “The team gathered in the restaurant at the club for the third-round draw and all I wanted was a Premier League club.

“It was tense waiting, but relieved to draw such a big club and excited to get such a big game.

“The cup tie at Slough [round two] was live on television, but this one will be on another level and up against players you watch every week on television in the Premier League. That will be incredible.

“It will be interesting esting to see what sort of team Palace play and if they rest a few, but I could be up against Tyrick Mitchell [England international].

“And now even Brennan Johnson could play after moving from Tottenham.”

SILKY MIDFIELDER: Luke Duffy in action for Macclesfield this season
PICTURE: Alamy

Strides

Duffy, who was also a talented amateur boxer who won a junior ABA title, added that Palace have made great strides in the six years he had a trial.

“When you look at where they are now compared to when I was there, it is far different,” he explained.

“Then they were only giving out one-year contracts at that time, and they weren’t stable like they are now, winning the FA Cup and playing in Europe. It is incredible what they have done.”

Duffy climbed the pyramid, leaving Lower Breck to join Warrington Town, who he helped win promotion to National League North, but left before the start of the next season.

Opportunity

That is when Macclesfield FC came knocking at the door at the start of the 2022/23 season, since when he clocked up more than 100 appearances at helped them win two promotions.

“I couldn’t turn down the opportunity down with Macclesfield being such a big club,” he said.

Duffy, a lifelong Everton fan, is playing at the highest level so far in his career and enjoying the challenge it has provided.

He comes from Liverpool and was at Croxteth ABC Boxing Club, which is run by Silkmen manager John Rooney’s uncle Richie, so he knew John and his brother Wayne before signing for Macclesfield.

“I had to make a choice, but I have always loved football, so it wasn’t really a choice,” he explained.

Duffy is from a family of scaffolders, spent 12 months in that trade after leaving school, before deciding it was not for him, and now works full-time for Macclesfield FC, where he also coaches the students taking the BTech education qualification.