Cornish was born Marie Janice Lutschini on 1 October 1956 in Wellington, New South Wales.[1] She was the daughter of Peter and Jan Lutschini. Her paternal grandfather immigrated to Australia from the Soviet Union via Italy and Canada; his original Russian surname was Italianised. Her mother is of South African descent.[3] Her brother Mitchell is a businessman in Papua New Guinea and has served as deputy chairman of Cricket PNG.[4]
Cornish grew up in country New South Wales where her father worked as a farmhand. She spent her early years in Ivanhoe before the family settled in Wellington, where she attended Wellington High School.[3]
Cricket career
From a young age Cornish played cricket on boys' teams. At the age of 15 she top-scored for the New South Wales Under-25s against New Zealand.[3]
Named vice-captain of Australia at the age of 22, Cornish played at the 1978 World Cup in India and the 1982 in New Zealand. She was at the crease when the winning runs were scored in the 1982 World Cup final against England, finishing with 24 not out as Australia won by three wickets with one over to spare.[3]
Personal life
Cornish retired from international cricket at the age of 25 to work full-time at the Commonwealth Bank. She had two children with her husband Peter, and remained involved in cricket as a coach, manager, and selector.[3]
In 2008, Cornish was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for services to cricket and the Wellington community.[4] She was named a life member of Cricket New South Wales in 2012 and the Marie Cornish Trophy is awarded to the winner of the state schoolgirls' knockout competition.[5]
