In what was probably the last home game for All Black and Crusaders stalwarts Richie McCaw and Dan Carter, Macilai admitted he felt more pressure to perform in front of his childhood heroes than in front of the rapturous, 14,000-strong, crowd which packed Christchurch's AMI Stadium.
"I was excited to be in the 23 squad on Saturday [but] was a bit nervous," Macilai said.
His admiration of McCaw and Carter's "workrate and how they play 80 minutes of rugby" was one of the reasons he signed with the franchise.
After training with the Blues' wider training squad last season, Macilai failed to make the cut for 2015. However, the Blues' loss was the Crusaders gain.
Coach Todd Blackadder had felt the young wing's strengths would mesh well with the side's gameplan and environment.
"We're delighted to have him on board and the thing that really excited me about him is that he's not just a good finisher but has all-round skills of a good rugby player," Blackadder said.
"He's got the ability to break the line, he actually goes looking for work, has genuine pace, he can tackle and clear rucks and does the basics well."
Sidelined for 12 rounds of the 2015 Super Rugby season with a broken bone in his left arm, Macilai said not being able to train had been difficult because "watching the boys have fun is hard. I couldn't wait to get back."
Regardless of whether he continues to make the 23-man Crusaders' game-day squad for the rest of the year, Macilai said he felt at home in his new surrounds, which had some similarities to his homeland, Fiji.
"It's good - it's all about rugby in Christchurch."
The Crusaders have a bye this weekend, then face the Waratahs in Sydney on May 23.
