Big day awaits Quentin MacDonald [Marlborough Express]
A big afternoon awaits Quentin MacDonald in Nelson on Sunday for more than one reason.
The hooker will notch his 50th NPC appearance for the Makos when he leads them onto Trafalgar Park for their crucial clash with Hawke's Bay.
He will follow in the footsteps of good friend and flatmate Joe Wheeler. A proud Central club member, MacDonald becomes just the second player from Marlborough after Wheeler to achieve the feat and the sixth since the Makos first took the field in 2006.
However, Sunday's match is also an important one for his team.
It pits the top two teams in the ITM Cup's championship division against one-another and not only provides the Makos with a chance to return to the top of the standings but an opportunity to redeem themselves after last week's highly disappointing, and unexpected, loss to North Harbour.
A former Marlborough Boys' College 1st XV captain, New Zealand Secondary Schools and under-19 rep and a member of the Blues squad in this year's Super Rugby competition, MacDonald said it would be a special moment to play his 50th Makos game so close to his home in Blenheim.
"It's huge [to play my 50th game].
"I've been here a while now. I still feel like one of the young dudes but I think I am getting a little bit older.
"It will be pretty special to led the boys out onto Trafalgar Park in front of all my family and friends.
"I love playing for the Makos. I guess it's just being able to come home and be so close to my family, that's pretty special, and the people we've got here - it's just different."
While it would be special to rack up 50 games, MacDonald said it had not been at the forefront of his thoughts, especially after the "reality check" they received against Harbour.
He had, however, thought about the possibility of coming up against younger brother and fellow hooker Jesse, who plays for Hawke's Bay.
MacDonald's main focus this week, though, was on helping his team rectify the issues from the Harbour match and record their fourth win in six matches against the Magpies.
"We had a few meetings to try and tap into what went wrong . . . training was pretty physical and we got the beat-up session we needed.
"[This game is] huge. We started off well and thought we were going pretty good and then we had the Harbour game, which was a real disappointment, the boys were pretty gutted.
"I think this game is probably our biggest of the season so far, it could be a turning point where we could go up or down."
