Born: 25 December, 1968 Test record: 5 Tests (1993) – 2 tries (8 points) Tours: 1993 tour of Britain and France
Lock Jason Mackie holds an esteemed place in Northland’s rugby league history as the first player from the region to play Test football for New Zealand.
A regular for New Zealand Māori in the early-1990s – including against Great Britain in 1990 and at the 1990 and ’92 Pacific Cups – Mackie also represented Kiwi Colts against Papua New Guinea in 1992.
The 24-year-old led Northland to the North Island second division title in 1993 before becoming just the fourth player from the province to be selected for the Kiwis.
Mackie made a tryscoring Test debut in the opening match of the tour, a 24-19 victory over Wales, and earned a bench spot for the series opener against Great Britain at Wembley. Following the 17-0 loss, Mackie was promoted to the No.13 jersey to replace Tawera Nikau for the remaining two Tests against Great Britain and the one-off clash with France, in which he crossed for another try.
The dynamic back-rower played in another six non-Test matches on tour and added six tries.
Mackie spent an injury-plagued 1994 season with Auckland City Vulcans in the inaugural Lion Red Cup ahead of Auckland Warriors’ entry into the Australian competition. He came off the bench in the Warriors’ unforgettable premiership debut against Brisbane Broncos in 1995 but played just four subsequent first-grade games and parted ways with the club midway through 1996.
