James Mack should be married. However, "should haves" in the coronavirus era are as common as windswept plains around his hometown of Gunnedah.
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Mack was due to wed his long-term partner, Danielle Boland, in May. But COVID-19 invaded Australia undetected, and the nuptials were postponed.
"It was what it was," he said. "We didn't get too worried about it - we just got on with it."
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The biggest day of their lives is now scheduled for April. COVID restrictions - if they remain - will determine the event's size. "Either way, we'll be getting married," Mack insisted.
The reciting of vows will formalise a relationship that began when Boland returned to Gunnedah after finishing year 12 at New England Girls' School, in Armidale.
They met through mutual friends who had attended St Xavier's Primary School. The couple were classmates at St Xavier's, although Mack said they were not close.
"She was into horses and stuff, and that's not anything I was into," he said.
Cricket and AFL: that's what Mack's into.
The fitter and turner, 31, was part of the Bulldogs' undefeated, premiership-winning season in 2020. And on Saturday, his second-placed Albion meet third-placed Mornington in a Twenty20 at Kitchener Park.
He is second on both the batting and bowling standings this season, scoring 175 runs at an average of 29.17 and collecting 13 wickets at 10.85.
On Monday, Mack and Boland marked 13 years of togetherness - a period that has seen them chase their sporting dreams with gusto. Boland is a state-level dressage competitor.
"That's all she does: ride horses," Mack said. "She rides every day, practices every day, and that's her thing."
In summing up their relationship, he said: "I think we just get along well. She's not really into cricket or footy, and I'm not really into horse sports.
"We have our time apart, and then enjoy it when we're together. We're not in each other's pockets all day."
He added: "I guess it's [the relationship] probably settled me down a little bit, maybe, over a period of time."
Are kids on the horizon?
"I wouldn't say in the immediate future," he replied. "That's a big decision to make. So they'll be a lot of discussion about that - put it that way."
