Marsden (née Hamilton) was born on 5 June 1941.

She played basketball for Auckland before being selected for the Silver Ferns, the national netball team, to play in the 1967 world championships, which were held in Perth, Western Australia.

Her first game for her country was against South Africa in the world championships on 14 August 1967.

New Zealand won the championships, beating Australia 40–34 in the deciding match.

[1][2] The 1967 world championship team was inducted into the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame in 1996.