How a school reward turned AFL star into a Nike sneaker obsessive
Hawthorn midfielder Connor Macdonald has built a 145-pair sneaker collection that started with a childhood deal with his parents to earn his first pair of Nike TNs by being a ‘good boy’
READING LEVEL: GREEN
It all started with a single pair of Nike TNs and Hawks midfielder Connor Macdonald can remember it like it was yesterday.
He had struck a deal with his parents for the white-on-white-on-white prize he’d been eyeing.
“I had to be a very good student and good boy at school for the semester, so that was my reward from my parents,” he said.
“That was where my love started from – I really wanted this pair of shoes and I did well for a long time and that was my reward.”
His parents Robbie and Georgia could never have imagined what that reward would lead to.
From that one pair, Macdonald’s place now resembles a “shoe museum” in tribute to his off-field love of lifestyle and streetwear shoes, a fascination that has been years and thousands of dollars in the making.
“From around that 14 or 15 year old age, I just started buying a few more here and there and that’s where my love grew,” he said.
“Ever since I was a kid, I said if I was ever lucky enough to, I wanted a really big shoe collection, and I guess that’s what I’ve been able to do now.
“That (first pair) followed into buying off resellers, Facebook Marketplace … and I would actually buy worn or second-hand shoes and clean them up, wash them, make sure they looked really good and I would resell them for a bit of extra coin on the side.”
He said becoming a Hawk at the end of 2021 helped his personal hobby.
“There was a pair I really wanted … and the seller was pretty firm (on the price),” he said. “By the time I actually met up with the person, it turned out he was a big Hawks fan and he said, ‘If I can get a photo with you, I’ll do the discounted price’. It was pretty funny.”
The collection started in his shoe cupboard, then moved into a room until finally it burst into the living area, evolving* into a complete display.
“Around the TV and surrounding I’ve got the full shoe collection there,” Macdonald said. “The total number right now I’d say is about 140, 145.”
Around 90 per cent of the collection gets worn – some only on special occasions – but there’s a few that will never feel his feet.
One pair in particular is prized: the TN Nike Air Max Plus Purple Haze. Manufactured in 2009, they feature an uncommon colourway* with a purple upper and purple laces and are rare and treasured. Search efforts by CODE Sports found one pair on eBay priced at more than $1600.
“No, they won’t ever be worn,” Macdonald said.
But storing, displaying and moving 145-odd pairs of sneakers – including a sought-after rare pair – could not be forever. Or could it?
“I think there’s potential to sell (them) one day in the future, or keep,” he said.
“Realistically, I’m not going to hold onto all of them but there’ll be a select few – whether that’s 20 to 40 pairs that have sentimental* value and I enjoy having them as a collector and I won’t get rid of them.”
The Nike TN remains easily his favourite shoe.
The collection that started with one pair now contains around 65 of that model in particular, with TN standing for “Tuned Air”, in reference to the cushioning technology used in the Nike Air Max Plus range.
The forward even signed a pair recently for a Hawthorn fan in what felt like a bit of a full-circle moment ahead of hosting a preliminary final this weekend.
“It’ll be awesome and personally myself and a lot of other boys haven’t had the week off before, so it’s something new to us but it’ll be really beneficial to the group to have the extra week off and everyone refresh, recover and be able to go full steam ahead for the prelim,” Macdonald said.
“Everyone is just very excited. The vibe at the club is so up and about. To have a home prelim at the MCG with hopefully 80, 90, 100,000 people will be amazing. This group loves playing in front of big crowds in big finals.”
POLL
GLOSSARY
- evolving: to develop gradually, or to cause something or someone to develop slowly over time
- colourway: a combination of colours or one particular colour in which something such as clothing, cloth, or paper is made, or in which a place is decorated
- sentimental: when a person or thing feels or makes you feel emotions such as tenderness, affection, nostalgia or sadness
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QUICK QUIZ
- Who did Macdonald strike a deal with as a boy to get his first pair of Nike TNs?
- What did he have to do to get his reward?
- As a teenager, where did he source some second-hand shoes and how did he prepare them for resale to make some money?
- What are the main details of his most prized pair?
- What does the “TN” in Nike TN stand for and what does it refer to?
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CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Sneaker statistics!
Use the information from the article to calculate the following maths problems.
Connor has approximately 145 pairs of shoes.
Approximately 90 per cent are worn.
- Estimate how many pairs he wears.
- Estimate how many pairs he doesn’t regularly wear.
- If he had 140 pairs instead, how many would 90 per cent be?
- If his collection grew by 10 pairs, how many would he have?
- If he sold 25 pairs, how many would remain?
- If he kept only 30 sentimental pairs, what percentage of his collection would that be?
Compare your answers to a classmate and discuss any differences.
Time: allow 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: Mathematics, Critical and Creative Thinking
2. Extension
Do you think you could make some extra money doing something like Connor does?
What is your profit margin if this was the scenario:
You buy a second-hand pair of sneakers for $80.
You spend $15 cleaning/restoring them.
You sell them for $140.
Profit =?
What other costs might you incur as a reseller?
Time: allow 15 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Mathematics, Personal and Social, Critical and Creative Thinking
VCOP ACTIVITY
Punctuation thief
Pick a paragraph from the article, or about three sentences together if that’s easier, and rewrite it without the punctuation. At the bottom of the page, write a list of all the punctuation you stole and in the order you stole it. For example; C , . C .
Then swap your book with another person and see if they can work out where the punctuation needs to be restored.
Make it easier: underline where you stole the punctuation from but don’t put the list at the bottom in order.
Make it harder: don’t put the punctuation in order at the bottom.
Underline where you took the punctuation from, but don’t tell them what pieces you took.
Just tell them how many pieces you took, but not what they are.
Don’t give them any clues!