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General First nameJoy Marriott
LastnameMarshall
GenderMale
CountryNew Zealand
Date of birth1867-01-23
Place of birthIsleworth, Suffolk, England
Date of death1903-09-02
Place of deathHeathcote River, Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand


About

From The Auckland Star, 16 September 1903:

By “Cant. Coll.”

So, poor Joy Marshall has gone. It is very hard for anyone who knew him well to realise the end. He was physically and mentally one of the best all-round men I ever saw, and, though there, may have been some of his acquaintances who did not appreciate or understand him, I never met anyone who did not respect him. He was a quiet man, not given to hasty, speech, but with a wonderful fund of vitality and energy behind his reserve, and nothing less than this could have pulled him through the immense amount of physical and intellectual work that he crowded into his life.

He gained high academical honours here. He won Junior and Senior University Scholarships, took his B.A. degree in 1889, and his M.A. the next year with a double class. But all the time he was reading for his examinations, and playing an active part in college life he was doing enough athletics to satisfy three ordinary men. Though he was powerfully built and muscular, I should not say he had, like his brothers, Dr “Pat” and George Marshall, any exceptional qualifications for success as an athlete, except his personal temperament.

He was, above all things, persistent, cool and resolute and no man ever “tried” harder at everything he undertook. As a footballer he was one of the best centre three-quarters thai ever played in the colony – a fine kick, a deadly tackle, and a clever but unselfish scorer. I doubt if any team in New Zealand has ever given so fine an exposition of the “four three-quarter game” as the Canterbury College Fifteen of 1888 to 1900, when Marshall was at his best.

At lawn tennis he was twice champion of the colony; and here, again, he had no special personal adaptation to the game but his courage and strength. Without a backhand stroke, and without volleying -power, he beat the invincible Minden Fenwick in 1890; and apain,by sheer pluck and energy, in 1896 he won the championship from Harold A. Parker the most brilliant player the colony has yet produced.

At cricket Marshall suffered from lack of opportunity; but at Wanganui, and wherever else he played, he was known as one of the finest bats in the colony. He was one of the few colonials who scored a century against Warner’s team last season, and he played cricket as he played every other game – with all his heart and soul, and with a persistent refusal to accept failure or defeat. But all this meant a constant, strain upon him, and, in spite of his fine physique, his constitution was far from sound.

In 1889 he played into the final round of the Tennis Championships at Dunedin, and collapsed on the last day. He was seriously ill for many weeks, and I remember well how his first thought when he recovered was to apologise to his partner for breaking down. But it would give a very false impression of the man to imply that his best energies were devoted to athletics. He played hard, as he worked hard, because it was his nature to do things thoroughly, and his habit to persevere.

After completing hjs University course here he went 'Home to Cambridge, and kept terms there. When he came back from Cambridge he became form master at Christ’s. College, Christchurch, and his personal force of character and his devotion to duty, combined with his prowess at football and cricket, left a deep impression upon all the boys who came under his charge.

When he removed to Wanganui to teach and officiate as chaplain in his own old school, he took up athletics again as enthusiastically as ever, and it was largely owing to his exertions that the Wanganui Collegiate School has attained its present preeminence on the football field. But everywhere be went he left the mark of a strong, resolute man, inspired by high ideals, and devoted to any and every form of duty that came in his way.

Another severe illness a few weeks ago compelled him to stop work for the time; and then came the final tragic mystery. I do not claim to have been one of Marshall’s intimate friends, but I knew him in many different capacities, and I am glad to put on record my respect and admiration for a man who in all the years I knew him never did anything unworthy of the best traditions of British athletics and British university life, nor anything inconsistent with the high and sacred calling that he had chosen.

May he rest in peace.

Media


Archive statistics Career1889 - 1901
Tournament wins2
Matches36
Match wins25


Tournament wins 1896 - New Zealand Championships (Amateur)
1890 - New Zealand Championships (Amateur)


Tournaments New Zealand Championships - 1901 New Zealand Championships - 1899 New Zealand Championships - 1898 New Zealand Championships - 1897 New Zealand Championships - 1896 Irish Championships - 1895 Kent Championships - 1895 Northern Lawn Tennis Association Tournament - 1895 New Zealand Championships - 1893 New Zealand Championships - 1892 New Zealand Championships - 1891 New Zealand Championships - 1890 New Zealand Championships - 1889