Macclesfield Town: 10 Things

The Shaymen travel to Macclesfield Town on Tuesday in our next league game. Let’s get to know them prior to the match.

Macclesfieldis a market town and civil parish in Cheshire, England. The population of Macclesfield at the 2011 census was 52,044.
The club was formed in 1874and play home games at the 6,355 capacity Moss Rose They were members of the Football League from 1997 until 2012, playing in the Second Division (now League One) in the 1998–99 season.
The club were founder members of the Northern Premier League, one of three leagues at the fifth tier of English football, upon its creation in 1968. Macclesfield Town were champions in each of the first two seasons of the competition, finishing twelve points clear in 1968–69, and by goal average in 1969–70. The 1969–70 season also resulted in a trip to Wembley for the inaugural final of the FA Trophy, a knockout competition for non-league clubs. Macclesfield Town defeated Telford United 2–0 in front of more than 28,000 spectators to win the competition.
Macclesfield Town play their home games at the Moss Rosestadium in the south of the town, and have done so since 1891. The first game at the Moss Rose (on the ground adjoining the then named, Moss Rose Inn) took place on 12 September 1891 and therefore 2011 was the ground’s 120th anniversary. Before moving to the Moss Rose, three other grounds were used: Macclesfield Grammar School, Rostron’s Field (near Coare Street) and Victoria Road (then known as Bowfield Lane).
Macclesfield Town’s colours are blue and white; the club have used combinations of these colours since 1947, with the exception of the 1975–76 season, when the team wore tangerine and black as part of a sponsorship deal. Earlier incarnations of the club wore several different colours. The first Macclesfield kit was amber and black stripes, but between 1882 and 1947 the club also used red and white, red, yellow and blue, blue and white, and black and white.
The club crest is based upon the coat of arms of Macclesfield, and features a blue Lion Rampant holding a wheatsheaf. A new club crest was planned for the start of the 2007–08 season. However, many loyal supporters were not happy with the modern design, so the plans were delayed and a re-designed badge was introduced in early 2008, which has won the approval of the majority of fans.
Macclesfield Town’s traditional rivals are Altrincham, a rivalry dating back to when both clubs were in the Cheshire League, and later the Northern Premier League and Football Conference.
Macclesfield manager, John Askey, currently manages the Silkmen. He spent the latter stages of his football career, from 1984 to 2003. Making 406 appearances and scoring 106 goals.
Askey is also the club’s second record top goalscorer in the Football League with 31 goals. Matthew Tipton is the record holder with 50 goals.
Macclesfield Town made history when Chris Priest, a Macclesfield Town player, scored the final goal of the last millennium.