Natalie Medhurst

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Natalie Medhurst (born 20 January 1984) is an Australian netball player. Medhurst plays as a shooter for the Adelaide Thunderbirds and Australian national netball teams.

Medhurst rose to prominence in 2004, when the then twenty year old had a stunning debut for the Adelaide Thunderbirds. Replacing club legend Jacqui Delaney, Medhurst put many of the world's best defenders to task with her accuracy, speed, and elusive nature.

Medhurst went on to represent Australia at the 2005 World Youth Championships, where they finished in 3rd place. She continued to develop as a player destined to represent Australia at open level, and in 2007 she finally achieved that aim, making her debut against Jamaica on 8 July 2007 and shooting at 100% during the quarter she was on.

Medhurst continued her dream debut season for Australia during the World Championships, where she ended the preliminary rounds as the 3rd most accurate shooter at the championships, with a strike rate of 91%. Her stellar rise continued in the grand final against New Zealand, when she was brought on in the final quarter when Australia's senior shooters were struggling. In the most intense of finals, Medhurst brought an air of poise and maturity into the Australian shooting circle, and calmly converted all three of her attempts at goal. Australia won the final 42 - 38, making Medhurst a world champion.

Medhurst's greatest strengths are her accuracy, elusiveness, speed, and cool demeanour while under pressure. In 2008 she will represent the Adelaide Thunderbirds in the newly-created ANZ championships, and looks set to be one of the stars of the competition.

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