The P.E. Teacher Who Downed a Palace - Who is Macclesfield FA Cup Hero Sam Heathcote?

Macclesfield's FA Cup Hero is a PE Teacher?

Macclesfield created FA Cup history last weekend as they took down the reigning champions Crystal Palace. 117 places separate the two sides, and this was the biggest upset the competition has ever seen.

Palace, who won the FA Cup for the first time in their history in 2025, travelled up to Macclesfield in the hopes of retaining the FA Cup this year. They started the game slowly and were punished, finding themselves a goal behind just before halftime. Yes, to answer your question, it was yet another set piece, the 9th set piece conceded in less than eight games. If you couldn’t tell already, I am a Palace fan who is tired of conceding these set pieces. The misery was doubled as the Silkmen doubled their lead before Pino finally scored a set piece, which ultimately wasn’t enough as Palace crashed out of the FA Cup.

Anyway, let's move on and look at one of Macclesfield’s heroes who helped take them into the FA Cup Fourth Round!

After Macclesfield Town were liquidated due to debts in 2020, the club reformed as Macclesfield FC and had to restart in the ninth tier…

Now they’re in the sixth tier and have just knocked out FA Cup holders Crystal Palace in the third round.

The biggest upset in FA Cup… pic.twitter.com/OAfu4qwfUR

— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) January 10, 2026

Who is Sam Heathcote?

Macclesfield centre back Sam Heathcote was one of many standout stars during the game against Palace, and he was unlucky not to keep a clean sheet, conceding a last-minute Free-Kick to £25 million summer signing Yeremy Pino.

The defender, who played locally for West Didsbury & Chorlton before continuing his non-league journey before eventually joined the Silkmen, is a primary school teacher at Stamford Park Primary School in Altrincham. He received a hero’s welcome on his return to normality on Monday morning.

Sam's father, Graham, once scored a penalty at the Kop end for Altrincham during an FA Cup tie against Liverpool in 1981 and 45 years on from the feat, his 28-year-old son has knocked out the reiging champions and finds himself in the FA Cup Fourth Round.

The day was remarkable for all those involved, as it gave fans and players another punt at potentially a Premier League giant. The teacher Heathcote was dreaming of Manchester United in the next round. He is a boyhood fan, but the opportunity unfortunately disappeared before the draw on Monday night as United fell short to a 2-1 defeat at home to Brighton on Sunday.

The Fourth Round draw took place before Liverpool vs Barnsley on Monday. The Silkmen managed to draw yet another Premier League side at home in Brentford and will be hoping they can achieve the same again and progress to the Fifth Round. The next round of fixtures will take place on the weekend of the 14th of February and gives time for Macclesfield to prep as much as possible for arguably the biggest game in their history.

Macclesfield’s Sam Heathcote, who's also a PE teacher, returned to his school as a hero this morning! 🤩👏 pic.twitter.com/ARh6EGYkpM

— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) January 12, 2026

How did Macclesfield achieve history?

The game took place on the 10th of January 2026 in front of a sell-out crowd at the Leasing .com Stadium. There were over 6000 fans, including a large section of travelling Palace fans.

Palace started well, popping the ball around, getting used to an unfamiliar surface in the form of astroturf. The Eagles dominated possession, having 70% of the ball in the first half but not registering a shot on target, their best opportunity coming from Christantus Uche, who fired over from the edge of the box. The Silkmen picked their chances to go forward well, catching Palace on the counter numerous times. Just 2 minutes before the end of the first 45, upset step skipper Paul Dawson, who nodded home from a set piece to give the home side the lead.

Oliver Glasner was forced to take action at halftime, making three substitutions in the hope that they could turn Palace’s fortunes around. The introduction of Mitchell, Hughes and the new £35 million signing Brennan Johnson. Macclesfield seemed unfazed by these big names and came out firing.

After just 15 minutes of the restart, a goalmouth scrap landed at Isaac Buckley-Ricketts, who, in some fashion, found the back of the net with a crafty finish to double the home side’s lead. The Eagles look rattled and struggled to create many chances, but managed to claw a goal back in the 90th minute. It was a heart-in-mouth few minutes for Macclesfield when the fourth official signalled for a minimum of 6 additional minutes.

Macclesfield managed to hold on despite Palace’s best efforts and progressed to the FA Cup Fourth Round, completing the biggest upset the competition has ever seen. They will welcome Premier League side Brentford in the next round, hoping to do the same again.