Even his greatest fans would admit his displays for the Kiwis over the years have sometimes been patchy. There have been moments of irrepressible magic, like the final quarter in the 2010 Four Nations final when he created two late tries to stun the Kangaroos.
But earlier in that match Marshall admitted he was struggling and coach Steve Kearney was reportedly considering dragging him from the field. There have been other occasions where he has struggled to make a personal impact on matches, nor provide the kind of inspiration that players look to from a leader.
"It is a tricky one," admits former Kiwi captain Hugh McGahan. "On the field the captain steps in when things are going wrong and there needs to be changes. The problem for Benji is his fortunes are so closely aligned with the team. Generally if things are going wrong it is because it is not going right for him - which then makes it hard for him to tell everyone to lift. He can't do that if things aren't going well for him as a player."
McGahan is quick to add that he is not advocating that Marshall should be removed as captain but wonders how it is affecting his game.
"You don't want a guy like him to start to play more conservatively because he is captain," says McGahan. "He is at his best when he is running on instinct."
Generally one of the keys to captaincy is consistency. Look at the great Australian captains of the past decades - men like Wally Lewis, Mal Meninga, Brad Fittler, Laurie Daley and Darren Lockyer; all capable of brilliant match-winning deeds but built upon a solid and dependable base - they almost never had bad games.
Marshall seemed a slightly unusual appointment back in 2009, a bit like Carlos Spencer leading the All Blacks.
To be fair, he has responded to the challenge and the match overnight was his 17th match as captain, one less than Mark Graham and Ruben Wiki (18) and two behind the record holder Gary Freeman (19).
It has also ignited a desire to represent his country; those 17 games have been consecutive and he has not missed a match for the Kiwis since the test against Australia in 2008. Before that, he managed just three internationals out of a possible 20 in the three years after making his debut in 2005, though that was mitigated by a series of serious shoulder injuries.
Former Kiwi coach Frank Endacott has been concerned with some aspects of Marshall's game in this year's Four Nations' tournament.
"He has struggled a bit on defence," says Endacott. "It is not about his tackling - that has improved a lot in the last few years - it is more with his defensive reads and the Australians targeted his side in both matches."
Endacott believes that Marshall probably "thrives" on the captaincy but wonders if a shared arrangement might lessen the burden and bring out the best in him.
"We have seen co-captains before at various levels and maybe someone like Simon Mannering is now ready to take some of the heat off Benji," says Endacott. "I didn't think Simon was a natural captain at the Warriors but to be fair he has come on very well. He has improved out of sight as a leader. Maybe he could be a good right arm for Benji out there. It's probably worth a go."
"There is always the kudos of captaincy which is hard to take when it is taken off you," says McGahan. "If Steve Kearney decided to go down that path it would need to be sold in the right way; that it was being done to benefit his game."
