They are big expectations. But Jamie Mackintosh is a big boy with big dreams, and he has been handling the spotlight with aplomb since it first fell on his ample frame when he was wearing a Southland Boys High School 1st XV jersey.
There has been so much written and said about this young man, so many bold predictions, that is easy to forget he has played just one season of Super 14 rugby and has but three caps.
Mackintosh has had enough of the hype. He is ready to play, and he will have the chance in a Highlanders side that has a new look about it this season.
‘‘I feel really uncomfortable when I read things in the media where I'm pumped up about being a future All Black or the next big thing,'' Mackintosh said.
‘‘That doesn't sit with me that well. My first objective is just proving my worth to my team-mates and gaining the respect of my peers. That's a big thing I've learned, because you can't worry about what people are writing or saying.
‘‘I've only played three Super 14 games and I have to show my coach and my team-mates that I can contribute to the team environment and play well for the Highlanders. ‘‘If things go well from there, we'll see what happens.''
It will be a Highlanders front row that is very much a work in progress. Gone are Anton Oliver, Carl Hayman and Clarke Dermody, All Blacks all, who possessed a combined 252 Super 14 caps when they bolted for Europe.
In are props Mackintosh, Hawkes Bay firebrand Clint Newland, Dunedin journeyman Keith Cameron and Otago turned Southland anchor Chris King, augmented by relatively experienced hooker Jason Macdonald and David Hall.
Outside the region, they expect the Highlanders to be less of a threat at scrum time. Mackintosh can appreciate the reasons for that. ‘‘We've talked about it. I mean, those guys were idols to me and I've always looked up to them.
‘‘This year, I think we've got to make our own legacy. It's a bit of fresh start with people like big Clint and me. As a front row group, we want to set some standards, and get out there and get on with it.
‘‘I've been a bit apprehensive about my technique in the past. But I got more comfortable last year and now I'm much more excited about scrummaging than I used to be.''
Progress has been a key word in Mackintosh's career. As big a splash as he made in the schoolboy and age group ranks, he had to bide his time while he waited for an opportunity as a professional.
Southland took care to introduce him slowly in the national championship, then the Highlanders were over-ruled from selecting him in 2006, as the New Zealand Rugby Union felt he needed time to recover from a shoulder injury and get used to the demands of Super 14 training.
‘‘I was a little frustrated at the time. Maybe I was a little big for my boots and thought I could play,'' Mackintosh recalled. ‘‘But looking back now, I was definitely a year away, and that year training and in the gym did me good.''
The situation had echoes of one of the more famous non-selections in New Zealand age group rugby. In early 2002, Mackintosh - then just 16 - was named in the New Zealand Under-19 team but was ruled to be too young.
‘‘I'd just got back from a New Zealand Schools tour, I flew back to Palmerston North for the Under-19 trial and somehow I slid into the team. ‘‘Then it sort of came out that the rules were that 16 was too young. The day the boys flew out to Italy, I flew back to Invercargill. That was a little bit of an emotional roller-coaster.''
Mackintosh's time would come. He captained New Zealand Under-19 in 2003, when his team-mates included fellow Highlanders Aaron Bancroft, Tim Boys, Isaac Ross and Steven Setephano, and again in 2004, when the side won the world title.
He also captained the New Zealand Colts in both 2005 and 2006. For years, Mackintosh was a man among boys, especially when his rugby ability caught up with his size.
‘‘Growing up on the farm, I was always pretty plump. Then about fourth or fifth form I started to get a bit of height about me and filled my frame out.
‘‘I was a fat sort of a kid. I got up to about 120kg when I was sixth form but by that stage I had height to go with it.''
Home is Waimahaka, a typical Southland rural outpost about 35min east of Invercargill. Father Alistair is a sheep farmer, and mother Kate is a hospice nurse who was the longserving manager of the champion Southern Sting netball team.
Mackintosh has two older sisters, one the general manager of Netball Southland and one a vet, and a younger brother, Dunedin lockflanker Andrew.
Primary school with about 35 kids gave way to boarding school at Southland Boys. But city life, and the opportunities that came through rugby, never dulled his passion for the farm and his family.
‘‘I love it down home. I've got a good balance in my life outside rugby. I really enjoy spending time with my family, getting back to the farm and spending time with my mates.
‘‘I think that's definitely why I had a pretty good season with Southland last year. I've made a point of getting out more but I went back to the farm after the NPC and I always enjoy going back there.''
Mackintosh lists his father and his 1st XV coach Peter Skelt as the two prime influences on his career. Then there's his former Stags teammate, Dermody, who is now playing for London Irish.
‘‘Derms and I are pretty much best mates. He looked after me a lot down home. He was captain and moved over to play tighthead so I could play. He sacrificed himself to help me and that is something I will never forget.
‘‘I've always been able to talk to Clarke, so it's a big adjustment with him being overseas. We would go out surfing together and chew the fat a lot. He just had a great perspective on life.''
One of Mackintosh's closest friends now is flanker Boys. The pair are keen hunters and, during the Air New Zealand Cup season, regularly rise at 5.30am on a Sunday to look for deer.
Mackintosh still treasures the rifle, a Tikka .270, he got for his 21st birthday. And he, Boys and Newland have been swapping hunting stories and lining up team-mates to come out for a look.
Rugby is serious business these days, but Mackintosh often comes across as bit of a big kid. He's always smiling, he enjoys the life he's making for himself, and he can't imagine doing anything else.
‘‘I just think this is great fun. I'm with 27 other boys who love rugby all day. If you make it fun, you want to turn up and you want to do well.
‘‘A bit of humour and a few jokes never go astray. I work hard when I train but when I'm not, I like to enjoy my time and have a laugh.
‘‘Rugby's always been my passion. I get a bit of stick from the boys for getting so excited about rugby. But that's just me. I can't think of anything else I'd rather be doing.''
