James Holt Marsh (31 October 1865 – 1 August 1928), was first a

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

international

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

player; and then an

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

international

player. He played club rugby for Edinburgh Institution F.P.,

Edinburgh University The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the town council under the authority of a royal charter from King James VI in 1582 and offi ...

and Swinton; and provincial rugby for Edinburgh District and East of Scotland District. He is the only player to have represented two international teams in the Home Nations Championship.Griffiths (2000), pg 28. He was a General Practitioner by profession, holding a practice in Manchester for nearly forty years.Griffiths (1987), pg 2:7.

Rugby Union career

Amateur career

Born in Rumworth, near Swinton in England, Marsh was schooled in Scotland. Marsh was educated at Edinburgh Institute before being accepted at

to study medicine. At the time of his Scotland call up, Marsh was playing club rugby for Edinburgh Institution F.P., and was brought in at three-quarters. He moved to play for

in 1890. This did not go down well with his former club and the ''Athletic News'' of 27 October 1890 reported:

Some rather bitter things are being said in Edinburgh about James Marsh, the Swintonian, preferring to play for Edinburgh University instead of with his old colleagues in the Edinburgh Institution Club.

This prompted a move to England that same season; and he then played for Swinton.

Provincial career

He played for Edinburgh District against Glasgow District in the 1886 inter-city match. He also played for Edinburgh in the 1887 and 1888 fixtures. He played for East of Scotland District in their match against West of Scotland District on 29 January 1887. He also played in the 1888 and 1889 fixtures. Almost immediately on his move to Swinton, he was playing in the

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

versus Yorkshire match on 29 November 1890. He was noted as an Edinburgh University three-quarter and also as playing for Swinton. Lancashire won the match. After his move to England, it was during the 1890–91 season his strong club play brought him to the attention of the English selectors, and he was brought into England's annual North vs. South match.Griffiths (2000), pg 27.

International career

In 1889, Marsh was selected for the Scottish international team when he was chosen to face Wales as part of the

1890 Home Nations Championship The 1890 Home Nations Championship was the eighth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 1 February and 15 March. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Table Results ...

. Scotland beat Wales and Marsh was reselected for the second, and final game of the competition, away to Ireland at Belfast. With England having withdrawn from the tournament, a win over the Irish would give Scotland the Home Nations, but not the

Grand Slam Grand Slam or Grand slam may refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category terminology originating in contract bridge and other whist card games Athletics * Grand Slam Track, professional track and field league Auto racing * ...

. Scotland won the match thanks to a single dropped goal from

Henry Stevenson Henry James Stevenson (12 July 1867 – 8 August 1945) was a Scotland international rugby union player. He played at full back. He also played first-class cricket. Rugby Union career Amateur career Stevenson played for Edinburgh Academicals. ...

. His move to England and his form for Swinton led to Marsh being selected for the

1892 Home Nations Championship The 1892 Home Nations Championship was the tenth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 2 January and 5 March. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. England took the 1892 Champio ...

for England in the game against Ireland, playing again at threequarters alongside Dicky Lockwood and George Hubbard. The English team was victorious, but Marsh was not selected for the team again. It is unknown if this was due to sanctions or actions taken by the rugby unions or if it was a selection choice.

Medical career

After qualifying as a doctor, Marsh moved to

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

to set up a medical practice.

Bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marsh, James Holt 1865 births 1928 deaths Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Edinburgh University RFC players England international rugby union players Edinburgh District (rugby union) players Rugby union players from Greater Manchester Scotland international rugby union players Scottish rugby union players Swinton Lions players Edinburgh Institution F.P. players East of Scotland District players Lancashire County RFU players Rugby union three-quarters