Born in
Blenheim, MacDonald made his provincial debut for Marlborough against Buller in 1994. He played 122 matches for the
Crusaders and seven for the
Chiefs in the
Super 14, and played for
Canterbury in the
National Provincial Championship. He was a prodigious goal kicker. He is rare among New Zealand exported players, because he played even better after his return from Japan. In 2008, Sky Sport's
Reunion awarded him the Crusader's MVP title for their Super 14 title-winning season. He played for Burnside in the
Christchurch premier competition. He made his
All Blacks debut age 22, versus
Scotland in 2000. He scored a total of 141 test points (14 tries, 25 conversions, 7 penalties) in the 56 tests he played. He has also appeared for
New Zealand Māori, playing three games and scoring 10 points, including the winning try against the
British and Irish Lions in 2005 in Hamilton. In the
2003 Rugby World Cup, he was shifted from fullback to centre by All Blacks backline coach
Robbie Deans. This proved to be a failure, and the last time he played at centre. In 2005, he was shifted to first five-eighth during the Tri-Nations to cover for the injured Daniel Carter.
Japan In 2004 season, MacDonald played for
Yamaha Jubilo in Japan. He played for
Kintetsu Liners in Japan in the 2009–2010 season. In 2010 he announced his immediate retirement from rugby, after failing to recover from a long-term injury. It was also announced in 2010 that MacDonald would become an assistant coach for the
Tasman Makos for the 2010 season.
All Blacks MacDonald was appointed as an assistant coach for the All Blacks in 2024, a specialising in the attack area for the All Blacks. After five tests in the role, two of which were rugby championship games, MacDonald decided to resign and left his role due to having differing views with the head coach
Scott Robertson.
Western Force In February 2025 MacDonald was appointed as a coaching consultant to the Western Force. ==Cricket==