PROUD Natalie Haythornthwaite hailed an “amazing experience” after leading the England Netball Under 21s to a Test series victory over South Africa - days after winning the University World Championships in Cape Town with Great Britain.
Natalie, from Barrowford, captained the squad to 11 wins out of 12 all told, including a 2-1 series victory against South Africa, and she said: “Natalie said: “The South Africa tour has been such an amazing experience and I have learnt so much I think I can prepare myself for just about anything now!”
Going into the series as World champions, the first Test match last Monday was won by England 44-34, after a “very competitive” game.
The second match saw a defeat for England, after winning 7 matches on the trot, and Natalie said: “The South African side had obviously done their homework after the first game but we didn’t want to lose another game.”
The team pulled it back in the third Test match, coming out with a 55-44 victory to claim a series win.
Natalie, pictured with the Test series trophy (s), said: “The girls were so happy, as was I, as captain again for this test series.
“It made me beyond proud to know how the girls can bounce back from anything and put out a winning performance after being defeated the day before.
“I am thankful to the coaches for helping us get past our loss the day before, a pure squad performance ensured we won the test series!”
Natalie and her team returned to England on Monday after the tour in South Africa.
She has a four-week break before heading to Bath for a summer camp in August, then travelling to Australia on another tour with the England Under 21 squad to play in a four-way Test series across the world.