February 29 marks a unique day on our calender. It comes once every four years and is over and gone before we know it.
Unfortunately for Brent Macaffer, his birthday falls on this one-in-four occasion.
The result means the 2010 Premiership player has only experienced seven birthday's in his 28-year lifespan.
As a celebration of Caff's Leap Year birthday, Collingwood Media has collected seven things you might not know about Brent Macaffer.
1. Another 2010 survivor leads
Macaffer is one of ten Premiership heroes who remain at the Holden Centre six years after the Magpies Grand Final victory over St Kilda in 2010.
Premiership experience is unrivalled, and this has been proved in Collingwood leadership groups in recent years.
Macaffer’s inclusion makes him the sixth of the ten 2010 remaining players to be named as a member of the leadership group.
Travis Cloke and Tyson Goldsack were both vice-captains in 2015, while Scott Pendlebury, Nathan Brown and Steele Sidebottom will remain in the group this season.
Rewind six years and Macaffer was just 22 years old when he ran onto the field in the biggest game of his career.
With 25 games under his belt, the forward had 14 disposals and kicked two first-half goals as the Magpies overran the Saints in the season decider by 56 points.
2. He’s a Lulie Street star
Macaffer may have been off the field in 2015, but he remained in the spotlight thanks to his weekly role on Collingwood Media’s ‘From Lulie Street’.
Joined by Anthony Rocca and Marcus Wagner, Macaffer helped dissect the week’s VFL game in the light-hearted panel show.
The program caught the attention the Fox Footy’s ‘The Bounce’ in round 18 with Andrew Gaze questioning “Trent” Macaffer’s beard. Macaffer responded on Lulie Street, telling the former Olympian to “turn it up”.
In 2016, Macaffer is fully fit, a member of the leadership group, and has a baby on the way. With plenty on his plate, it remains to be seen if ‘Caff’ will return to the From Lulie Street desk.
WATCH - From Lulie Street: Guess who's back?
3. He’s a sports fanatic
Some footballers chose to get away from football outside of work, while others can’t get enough of the game.
Macaffer falls into the latter category.
“It depends on when we are playing, but if we happen to play on a Friday night, I will try to watch all of the games on Saturday, Saturday night and Sunday,” he told Glenn McFarlane from the Herald Sun in June 2014.
Macaffer is also an avid follower of tennis and cricket. He has a soft spot for the Pakistan cricket team and will often attend the Australian Open when the tennis arrives in Melbourne every January.
Above all else, it’s the hardwood floors of the NBA that captures Macaffer’s attention.
He sports an impressive range of NBA memorabilia and favours the Los Angeles Clippers as his chosen team.
While there are a number of talented basketballers at the Holden Centre, few would rival Macaffer’s interest in the game.
4. There’s another Macaffer on the way
2016 appears set to be the biggest year of Macaffer’s life. And returning to the AFL scene is just the beginning of it.
The 27-year-old last year announced via Instagram his engagement to partner Tamsin. The couple will wed in 2016, while also planning to welcome the birth of their first child.
Unfortunately for Magpie fans there will be no father-son rule to contend with, with a baby girl expected in the early stages of the season.
2016 has already consisted of an engagement party and a baby announcement, and it appears to only have more in store for Macaffer off the field.
5. Third leap year lucky?
Macaffer has technically only celebrated two birthdays during his time at Collingwood.
He has also never played a game for the Magpies during a leap year.
2008 was Macaffer’s second year on Collingwood’s rookie list. He kicked 38 goals in 17 games and was promoted to the senior list at the conclusion of the season.
While 2008 was a year of growth, 2012 was a season filled with setbacks.
The forward suffered a serious knee injury just a week before the home and away season in a NAB Cup game against the Western Bulldogs.
He returned to the VFL in round 19 and played three games in the reserves before the conclusion of the season.
Superstitious minds will hope that 2016 will be the leap year where Macaffer makes up for lost time and returns to the AFL fold.
6. An MCG specialist
When you’ve won a premiership on the home of football, why wouldn’t you?
Macaffer’s affection towards the ‘G extends beyond memories of the 2010 Grand Final.
27 of his 31 careers have come at the ground the Magpies have called home since 1999, while he has played 66 per cent of his total career games at the MCG.
Macaffer’s last game at the ground was statistically one of his best.
In round 21, 2014 he had a career-high 23 disposals in a performance that included three inside 50s and four clearances.
Macaffer and Scott Pendlebury walk off the MCG arm-in-arm after beating Port Adelaide in round 19, 2014.
7. A forgotten forward
The last time the AFL world saw Macaffer he was tagging the best midfielders in the competition out of the game.
He shut down the likes of Trent Cotchin, Jobe Watson and Marc Murphy in 2015, before injuring his knee in a clash with Gold Coast superstar Gary Ablett Jnr.
However before turning his attention to tagging, Macaffer was more than a capable mid-sized forward.
As a junior he was the star full forward at the Gippsland Power, kicking 70 goals in his top-age season and being named full forward in the TAC Cup Team of the Year.
It was a trend he continued at Collingwood. During his second year on the list he kicked eight goals in a VFL game against Werribee at Optus Oval.
With the likes of Levi Greenwood, Jack Crisp, Adam Treloar and Jordan De Goey joining the Magpies’ midfield since Macaffer’s last game, he may once again find his opening in front of goals in 2016.
