NRL star Benji Marshall has confessed to bizarre feelings while watching his wife give birth to their second child.
The Kiwi international and his wife Zoe welcomed baby daughter Ever in June, three years after the birth of their son Fox.
Marshall, 36, didn’t hold back when describing his emotions as a guest on his wife’s podcast The Deep, admitting he was almost turned on while watching his wife of eight years deliver their baby girl.
‘In that moment, after she has given birth and seeing her go through all of that stuff, your love for your wife or my love for Zoe went to another level,’ he recalled.
Benji Marshall (left) says he has a new appreciation for his wife of eight years Zoe (right)
‘I can’t even explain it. I was looking at her and it sounds crazy but in that moment I was thinking like, lets just make another baby now.
‘She was… I won’t say turning me on, but she had me in a zone where I was just like “I am all for this”. You’ve got to remember, she is making my dreams come true as well at the same time.’
Despite growing up wanting to be a dad, Marshall, who retired at the end of the 2021 season now looks back on his pre-fatherhood life as selfish.
‘I didn’t realise how much you just do things for yourself and not really worry about what’s happening with the rest of the world,’ he said.
‘They have turned my life into something so much better and made my life so much more. Being a parent is the best thing in the world.’
Marshall says he always wanted to be a dad, despite having not never known his biological father.
His mum was just 15 when she gave birth to him.
Beni Marshall admits in a new podcast he was almost turned on while watching his wife Zoe give birth to their second child in June
‘I didn’t know my real dad so there was always a part of me that wanted to become a dad and fill a space that I reckon I never got to have,’ Marshall said.
‘Giving birth to Fox was the best day of my life and when we found out we were pregnant with Ever and we found out it was a girl, it was just different being a dad knowing you were about to have a girl. It was a dream come true.’
Marshall added he has a new appreciation for his wife and other mothers for the sacrifices they’re willing to make for their children, including pregnancy.
‘To see the person you love sacrifice nine months of their life to help you become a parent and fulfil your dream is pretty special,’ he said. ‘My love sort of went to another level.
‘The connection between us went to another level, even though she was vomiting for most of it. The sickness and stuff that comes along with pregnancy is so crazy. I was just so proud of the way she handled it.’
Benji Marshall, pictured with wife Zoe, baby daughter Ever and son Fox said he grew up always wanting to be a dad
Marshall previously described his wife as a queen during childbirth.
‘The way in which she brought you into this world without any self worry and sooooo unselfishly giving is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen,’ he posted on Instagram at the time of Ever’s birth.
Marshall called time on his 346 game NRL career earlier this month after coming off the bench for the South Sydney Rabbitohs in their loss against the Penrith Panthers in the NRL Grand Final.
The five-eighth made his NRL debut as a schoolboy prodigy in 2003 and won a premiership with the West Tigers two years later, where his famous flick pass set up a try during the 2005 grand final became part of NRL folklore.
Benji Marshall says his love with Zoe went to a new level while watching her give birth to daughter Eve in June
He signed a two-year contract with Fox Sports and will appear on the upcoming season of Celebrity Apprentice.
He went on to have stints with the St George-Illawarra Dragons, Brisbane Broncos, the Tigers for a second time and this year the South Sydney Rabbitohs in what was a glittering NRL career.
Kiwi international Marshall also briefly defected to rugby union in 2014 with the Auckland Blues – only to return to the NRL and link with the Dragons after just six Super Rugby appearances.
Benji Marshall recently blew full-time on his 346-game NRL career. He’s pictured with his wife and two children on a post-season family holiday in the Whitsundays
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