'The fabric of Wests Tigers': Inside what makes Benji tick
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Adam Doueihi was practicing long range field goals after Wests Tigers training on Thursday when coach Benji Marshall walked up and asked him for the ball.
Receiving a pass from the injured playmaker, Marshall casually dropped the ball onto his right foot and slotted it between the posts.
Pumping his fist in celebration, the 39-year-old turned and walked from the field.
Marshall has long since swapped his playing boots for a coach’s clipboard, but Wests Tigers players are quickly learning how competitive he still is and how the one-time superstar playmaker can do almost anything he tries at a high level.
A fanatical golfer, Marshall plays off a handicap of six at Concord Golf Club, where he regularly has a hit between matches and even on game day.
The 2022 'Celebrity Apprentice' winner also plays piano and guitar, despite never having had a lesson, and was in a band that performed at Gold Coast Casino.
Moving from New Zealand in his teens to attend Keebra Park High on a sporting scholarship, Marshall’s marks were so high he could have obtained university entry for any subject he wanted, except medicine.
Instead, the Australian Schoolboys rugby league and mixed touch representative chose a career in the NRL, and Wests Tigers players are now backing Marshall to have a similar impact as a coach as he did as a player after back-to-back wins.
Flashback: Marshall the magnificent
“Benji and the other coaching staff make up the fabric of the Wests Tigers,” said prop Alex Twal, who is the only surviving member of the squad from the last time the club won three consecutive matches in 2018.
“Benji Marshall and Robbie Farah are names you think of when you think of the Wests Tigers so to have them at the helm leading the charge is a very humbling for us as players.”
Former Kangaroos prop David Klemmer said: “Benji has been good for everyone’s confidence, he is believing in everyone and backing everyone. He has made it enjoyable.
“It is a breath of fresh air for the whole footy club. It is not going to happen overnight, it is going to take some time but the club is going in the right direction and it has got a new energy about it”.
Energy is something Marshall has never lacked but he never does anything half-hearted, as those who have teed off with him on the golf course can attest.
“I only bought my clubs last year but I’ve thrown them out,” Klemmer said. “A few of the boys are trying to get back into it but I’m a terrible golfer.”
England forward John Bateman said: “Some of the boys have said he is very good but the last place I want to be is on a golf course. If I did, I would probably snap my clubs in half."
To put Marshall’s golfing prowess into context, Knights captain Kalyn Ponga, who was a New Zealand junior champion, plays off a five handicap.
Marshall’s Instagram page features posts of him playing golf at courses around Australia, New Zealand and Fiji, as well as memories from his 346 NRL appearances for Wests Tigers, the Dragons, Broncos and Rabbitohs, and 31 Tests for the Kiwis.
Music is another passion for Marshall, who was in a band with mates from Keebra Park that performed regularly and won a state-wide competition to play before a conference of Queensland school principals at Gold Coast Casino.
Marshall played guitar from a young age and taught himself to play piano and drums while helping Wests Tigers to the 2005 premiership.
“You only have to see Benji when he trains to know he is probably one of those people who is good at everything,” Bateman said.
“He is a good fellow to be around, he is approachable and that is what you want in a coach. He is getting the best out of us as a team and we are all enjoying it.”
