Nene Macdonald

In October 2011, Macdonald played for the Australian Schoolboys. In 2012, he joined the Sydney Roosters. He played for the Roosters' NYC team in 2012 and 2013. In 2013 and 2014, he played for the Queensland Under-20s team. In 2013, he played for Papua New Guinea against the Prime Minister's XIII team, scoring a try.

In 2013, Macdonald was selected in the Papua New Guinea squad for the 2013 World Cup. He played in 3 matches and scored a try in Papua New Guinea's 9-8 defeat by France.

On 11 February 2014, Macdonald was selected in the Roosters' inaugural 2014 NRL Auckland Nines squad. In Round 11 of the 2014 NRL season, he made his NRL debut for the Roosters against the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs on the wing and scored a try in the Roosters' 32-12 win at ANZ Stadium. He finished his debut year in the NRL having played 7 games and scoring 3 tries for the Roosters. On 2 September 2014, he was named on the wing in the 2014 NYC Team of the Year.

On 31 January and 1 February, Macdonald again played for the Roosters' in the 2015 NRL Auckland Nines. On 2 May, he played for Papua New Guinea against Fiji in the 2015 Melanesian Cup, playing on the wing in the Papua New Guinea's 22-10 loss at Cbus Super Stadium. On 16 June, he signed a 1 ⁄2-year contract with the Gold Coast Titans mid-season effective immediately. He made his club debut for the Titans in Round 15 against the New Zealand Warriors, playing at centre in the Titans' 36-14 loss at Cbus Super Stadium. In his next match in Round 16 against his former club the Sydney Roosters, he scored his first try for the Titans in their 20-10 loss at Central Coast Stadium. He finished off the 2015 season having played in 4 matches for the Roosters and 11 matches for the Titans, scoring 4 tries. On 15 December, he was named on interchange bench for the World All Stars to play against the Indigenous All Stars on 16 February 2016.

On 12 January, Macdonald was selected in the QAS Emerging Maroons squad. In February, he played for the Titans in the 2016 NRL Auckland Nines. On 13 February, he played for the World All Stars against the Indigenous All Stars in the 2016 All Stars match, playing on the wing in his team's 12-8 win at Suncorp Stadium. On 7 May, he played for Papua New Guinea against Fiji in the 2016 Melanesian Cup, playing at centre and scoring a try in Papua New Guinea's 24-22 win at Parramatta Stadium. In August, he signed a 3-year contract with the St George Illawarra Dragons starting in 2017. He finished the 2016 season having played in 23 matches and scoring 10 tries in his last year with the Titans.

In February 2017, Macdonald was named in the Dragons 2017 NRL Auckland Nines squad. On 10 February 2017, Macdonald played for the World All Stars against the Indigenous All Stars in the 2017 All Stars match, playing on the wing and scoring a try in the 34-8 loss at Hunter Stadium. In Round 1 of the 2017 NRL season, Macdonald made his club debut for the St George Illawarra Dragons against the Penrith Panthers, playing on the wing in the 42-10 win at Jubilee Oval.

Macdonald played for Papua New Guinea in the 2017 Rugby League World Cup.

On 9 October, Macdonald signed a three-year contract with the North Queensland Cowboys starting in 2019.