Born Kalgoorlie WA
12 September 1924
Steve Marsh, one of the great names in WA football, was a rover of the highest class who played 265 games between 1945 and 1960.
After army service in World War II, Marsh joined South Fremantle in 1945, and stayed with the club for 11 memorable years. These were South Fremantle’s golden years, and of all the stars at Fremantle Oval, none shone brighter than Marsh.
He played in all of South Fremantle’s six premiership teams in 1947, 1948, 1950, 1952, 1953 and 1954 and established a reputation for roving excellence at home and interstate.
He played 226 games for South Fremantle and 16 for WA. In that period Marsh won the 1952 Sandover Medal, the 1953 Simpson Medal for his brilliant roving in the grand final and the club’s fairest and best award, the A.W Walker Medal, four times.
Those individual awards provide ample testimony to Marsh’s mastery of the roving art. He was extremely fast, an outstanding drop kick and had the capacity to coordinate South Fremantle’s football.
His playing career with South Fremantle ended in 1956. At the end of that season Marsh wanted to become a coach and he applied for the job at South Fremantle. But the club committee reappointed Clive Lewington, who had held the position since 1950.
Marsh then accepted an offer to coach East Fremantle, the club he originally intended to join when he left Kalgoorlie after World War II. He became captain-coach of East Fremantle for the 1957 season and beyond.
He was an instant success, leading East Fremantle to a 16-point victory over East Perth in the Grand Final. The following season East Fremantle were again in the grand final but this time they were two-point losers to East Perth.
In 1959 Marsh did not coach East Fremantle but he returned in 1960 as non-playing coach. But he did make a comeback as a player within sight of his 36th birthday. He played two league matches and a reserves game to complete his illustrious career as a player. He made 39 appearances for East Fremantle.