League One strugglers Rochdale have earned a Wembley replay against Tottenham Hotspur courtesy of a dramatic 2-2 draw against their Premier League opposition in the fifth round of the FA Cup this evening.
The hosts took a surprise lead right on the stroke of half time through Ian Henderson, but Lucas Moura marked his full Spurs debut with the equalising goal and Harry Kane looked to have won it for the visitors when he came off the bench to score a penalty two minutes from time.
However, there was to be more late drama as Steve Davies - also introduced as a sub - tucked home an equalising goal in stoppage time to send the home fans wild inside Spotland Stadium, sealing a return trip to Wembley and keeping their dreams of a first ever quarter-final appearance alive.
Mauricio Pochettino made a full 11 changes to his side following their impressive Champions League draw with Juventus in midweek, including a first start for January arrival Lucas.
The Brazilian was one of Tottenham's brightest sparks in the first half, but Rochdale more than held their own and it was the home side that created the first big opportunity of the match.
Andy Cannon won possession off Victor Wanyama in an advanced position and played it in to Henderson, who ignored his teammates inside the area only to fire his finish straight at Michel Vorm.
Rochdale's newly-relaid pitch saw a number of players lose their footing, and a slip almost proved costly for the hosts when Son Heung-min capitalised to cut inside before going for goal, but Harrison McGahey got across to make the block before it could test Josh Lillis.
Tottenham's best chance of the half arrived after 26 minutes when Son's low strike was kept out by a smart save from Lillis, before Fernando Llorente eventually put his follow-up effort wide of the target when he should have scored.
Lucas then fired over from inside the area after Kieran Trippier's tantalizing low pass across the six-yard box went all the way through without a touch as Tottenham's pressure began to grow.
Rochdale soon hit back themselves, though, and the League One outfit created another good chance shortly after the half-hour mark when Callum Camps picked out Henderson, who sliced his finish horribly off target.
The hosts were rewarded for their endeavour right on the stroke of half time, though, as this time Henderson made no mistake with his finish, sliding the ball past Vorm from inside the area after being found by Cannon at the end of an incisive counter-attack.
The goal sent Spurs into the break facing the prospect of losing to a third-tier side in the FA Cup for the first time since January 1988, but they began to fight back in the second half and Harry Winks tested Lillis with a long-range drive 10 minutes after the restart.
The equaliser arrived on the hour mark as Moussa Sissoko's pass sent Lucas clear inside the area, and the full debutant took a touch before sweeping his finish past Lillis to mark his first start with a maiden Tottenham goal.
Rochdale quickly looked for a response but were denied a penalty after Henderson went down under the challenge of Juan Foyth inside the area, with referee Bobby Madley waving the claims away.
Camps also threatened with a disguised free kick which fizzed narrowly past the post, but the hosts' forays forward were becoming rarer and Tottenham's pressure steadily grew throughout the second half.
Spurs should have levelled things up with just under 20 minutes remaining when Wanyama met a corner at the back post, but he somehow turned the ball over the crossbar from two yards out when it looked easier to score.
Pochettino brought Dele Alli and Kane off the bench in search of a winning goal, and the former came close moments later when he skipped past his marker inside the area only to be thwarted at the near post.
Alli almost turned provider seven minutes from time when his back-heel sent the ball into the path of Son, but Jim McNulty produced a timely last-ditch block to deny the forward before Matt Done completed the clearance off the line.
Tottenham's pressure did finally tell in the closing stages of normal time, though, as Alli was upended inside the penalty area, allowing Kane to bury the resulting penalty into the bottom corner and past the despairing dive of Lillis.
The hosts refused to give up hope despite what looked like a terminal setback, and Keith Hill's side capped an impressive display with another piece of late drama as they rescued an equaliser with one of the last kicks of the match.
A cross from the left went all the way through to Davies, who took a touch inside the penalty area before quickly firing his finish past Vorm to send Spotland wild and keep Rochdale in the cup.
The result sees Spurs held to a draw by lower-league opposition for the second round in a row, and they must now add another fixture to their busy schedule as Spurs and Rochdale meet again at Wembley for a place in the quarter-finals, where the winners will face either Sheffield Wednesday or Swansea City.
ROCHDALE (3-5-2): Lillis; McGahey, McNulty (Inman, 89'), Delaney; Rafferty (Rathbone, 81'), Cannon, Camps, Kitching, Done; Humphrys (Davies, 75'), Henderson
TOTTENHAM (4-5-1): Vorm; Trippier, Foyth, Alderweireld, Rose; Lucas (Alli, 71'), Sissoko, Wanyama, Winks (Lamela, 62'), Son; Llorente (Kane, 76')
Barney Corkhill
