MacDonald Set For Dooradoyle Debut

New-signing Quentin MacDonald arrived in Cork from New Zealand last weekend and the hooker is set to get his first taste of action on Friday at Dooradoyle.

MacDonald, who has signed a three-month contract with the province, is expected to feature for Peter Malone’s Munster A side in the Interprovincial against Connacht Eagles as he looks to regain match sharpness.

“I can’t wait – I’ve been keeping fit and keeping strong and the game on Friday will be good to test the lungs out,” said the eager MacDonald. “I’m real excited, I love playing rugby so it will be good to get out there.”

The 25-year-old has played rugby in Ireland before as part of the New Zealand side that won the Under 19 World Cup in 2007 but it’s his first time in Munster and he’s felt very welcome.

“They’re real friendly people and I’m just trying to get used to the place. To come to a place like Munster with all the heritage and all the prestige they’ve got is pretty cool so hopefully I can contribute to that in some small part.

“Munster’s like the big name back in New Zealand to me, not many clubs can beat the All-Blacks and push them pretty close in recent times so Munster’s a big name and they’ve had some big players from New Zealand like Christian Cullen and Doug Howlett.”

At least there will be one familiar face around the Munster camp for the new-signing, MacDonald knows Rob Penney from his compatriot’s spell as Canterbury coach.

"I had a little bit to do with him back in Canterbury," said the New Zealand Maori international.

"He was the Canterbury Coach and I played with the Tasman Makos which is kind of the feeder club to the Crusaders but Rob’s had a strong part to play in Canterbury Rugby."

MacDonald last played in November with the Makos and was the stand-out performer as the side enjoyed their most successful season.

“I managed to get player of the year – with all the good players that we had that was pretty great," said MacDonald modestly.

“It was a good season, the team as a whole played pretty well and we managed to win the Championship over there which was a huge boost for us especially as we’re a new province – we’ve only been around for six or seven years."

The Blenheim-born hooker has been watching Munster from afar and is keen to play a part in the crucial last three months of the season that sees the side competing for the RaboDirect PRO12 and the Heineken Cup.

"I’ve caught a few games, I think it was the Ospreys game that I watched and I was trying to keep tabs on it. It’s always early morning so I get the replays but Munster have been going real well this year so hopefully I can help with that."

Munster A face Connacht Eagles in an Interprovincial this Friday in Dooradoyle at 3pm and admission is free.