Marshalling the family pride

Reclined on a couch with a beer in one hand and a remote in the other, Greg Marshall calls out intently to no one in particular “you have to beat Geelong to beat them”. On the television are the dying stages of a gripping encounter between Geelong and Fremantle and the feeling of excitement in the family room heightens.
Son James is perched to Greg’s right at the computer swivelling from the television to the computer to check on Gary Ablett’s supercoach updates. Greg’s wife, Sarah sits on his left on the adjacent couch with daughter Kate who begins to peer away from her laptop screen and onto the TV.
Two things strike you as father and son continue to talk about the impact of older aged rookies in the AFL: the Marshalls’ love their footy and love their family.
Since 1933 the Marshall family and the Pakenham Football Club have gone hand-in-hand.
From initial settlement into the area, Greg’s grandfather James (who was the longest serving policeman at Pakenham – 17 years) became secretary of the Pakenham Football Club and it was not long before the second and third generation started entrenching themselves into the Lions football culture too.
Most recently, Greg’s second initiation into the role of presidency at the Pakenham Football Club (his first appearance as president was in 1990) is, he says, only a minor contribution to the club when comparing it with contributions of his family.
“My contribution is a little bit less, I’m only the president,” he says proudly.
“My dad Len was secretary of the Pakenham Football Club at the age of 16, and served on the football club committee as a committee person, vice president and chairman of selectors and on the committee for 32 years,” said Greg.
Nominated as a life member in 1956, Len, who served in World War II and was a member of the Pakenham Urban Fire Brigade for more than 50 years, volunteered his services for over 40 years as Pakenham’s main gatekeeper.
“He retired from the gate when Pakenham moved to the new ground in the late ‘90s and he would be turning in his grave if he knew people were getting paid to collect money. He did it for nothing all those years. For 40 years”.
Also helping at the club are Greg’s aunties Norma, Thelma and Alma.
“Sounds like you’re rounding up cows doesn’t it,” Greg says with a laugh.
“Aunty Thel” and “Aunty Norma” as they are affectionately known around the club are both lifetime members and at the ages of 84 and 86 respectively still help out in the canteen on game days and training days.
Both married big names of the club with Aunty Norma marrying Norman “Widow” Jackson who is acknowledged as one of the best players to ever have played at Pakenham and Aunty Thelma marrying Percy Young, a life member and trainer for more than 25 years.
“Fifty-seven of us also had a party for Aunty Alma today (last Sunday) for her 80th birthday and everyone who went was family… And I would say about 60 per cent of those still follow the Pakenham Football Club,” said the proud nephew.
And that is only the second generation.
The third generation features Greg’s sister Brenda O’Brien who married life member and current head trainer Graham and was until last year the only female life member (as opposed to lifetime member) at the club.
Meanwhile, Greg, or “Taurus” as he is commonly known because of his bull-like qualities as a kid, played more than 200 games for Pakenham.
“I played football for Pakenham… not very well, not too many seniors games but plenty of reserves.”
It was during this time of the 1970s where he met his wife Sarah.
“I met this lovely woman at the Pakenham Football Club social rooms and Sarah was playing in one of the tennis teams. I wowed her with plenty of bulls..t. I told her how good I was at tennis and I took her out and she thought I was that wonderful she couldn’t get rid of me and we have been together ever since.”
Sarah, who remains adamant that Greg was just awe struck with her tennis skills, was also born in Pakenham and since then the pair have raised two kids, James and Kate who have kept alive the Marshall tradition in Pakenham.
James “Swampy” Marshall played football with the club but has also played high level tennis along with Kate at the Pakenham Tennis Club – the same club that their dad was once president of 30 years earlier.
As Greg begins to close down the Book Shop that has been a bookmark of Main Street for nearly 14 years, he is looking towards a new era.
“I’ll miss the people who would come in to have a cup of tea. John “Mulga” Shelton comes in three times a week to have a cup of tea and Mike Rolfe and Daryl Young come in to chat about footy and cricket .
Before quietly slipping into retirement Greg intends to open up a wholesale book business and continue on the good work of Brian Jagoe as Pakenham Football Club president.
“The Club runs very successfully. The thing we’re going to do is continue to do the things we’re really good at on and off the field to continue making it a great family club,” said Greg.
All that is left is to cough up the two-dollar in-house footy club fine that will again come his way after another reluctant photo appearance in the paper.