A Bunya football player will have another opportunity to pursue her defamation case against the local Pine Hills Football Club after a judge ruled her initial legal claim was too unclear to proceed.
Pine Hills FC, which is located in Bunya in Brisbane’s north, found itself in court after player Violetta Marsh filed a defamation claim in August 2024. The case centres around communication between the club and Ms Marsh regarding her player registration status.
On 19 September, Judge Michael Byrne KC struck out Ms Marsh’s original statement of claim, ruling it was too vague and ambiguous to allow for a fair trial. However, the judge has granted her 28 days to file a revised claim, suggesting the case may have merit if properly presented.
The legal dispute stems from events in August 2023 when Ms Marsh, who had played for the club from 2021 to 2023, received an email from Pine Hills FC explaining why the club would not accept future applications for her player registration.
According to court documents, Ms Marsh alleges she was defamed in 13 separate instances arising from a single email sent by the club’s general email account on 24 August 2023. She claims the email purported to represent the response of the entire club committee and was motivated by malice or ill-will.
Ms Marsh has also named club official Samantha Mawdsley in her legal action, alleging that Ms Mawdsley either sent the controversial email or circulated a draft version to other committee members before the final version was sent.
The club and Ms Mawdsley successfully argued for the case to be struck out, contending that any email communications were legitimate internal business matters within the club’s organisational structure. They challenged Ms Marsh’s claims about the potential for a “grapevine effect” where allegedly defamatory statements might spread to other people, arguing these allegations were unsupported by facts.
While striking out the initial claim, Judge Byrne noted that allegations of malicious intent were significant and could potentially support Ms Marsh’s case if properly proven. He observed that malicious publication might fall outside the boundaries of legitimate organisational engagement.
Under Queensland defamation law, defamation involves the publication of unsubstantiated information that negatively impacts someone’s reputation, and plaintiffs must prove the material has caused or is likely to cause serious harm to their reputation.
The club and Ms Mawdsley also sought summary judgement in their favour, which would have ended the case entirely, but Judge Byrne rejected this application. This suggests the judge believes there may be sufficient grounds for a properly pleaded case to proceed.
Pine Hills FC, founded in 1984 and based at James Drysdale Reserve in Bunya, currently competes in Football Queensland Premier League 3. The club describes itself as inclusive, modern and forward-thinking, with a mission to provide a positive, supportive and family-friendly football environment.
Ms Marsh now has until mid-October to file her new statement of claim. If she chooses to proceed and can address the court’s concerns about clarity and specificity, the case will move forward to determine whether the club’s communications about her registration constituted defamation.
Published 22-September-2025