Julie Corletto

Australian defender who won the Liz Ellis Diamond in 2009 and retired immediately after helping the Diamonds win the 2015 Netball World Cup while playing through serious knee injuries.

Julie Corletto (born Julie Prendergast on 31 October 1986 in Kerang, Victoria) made her Commonwealth Bank Trophy debut for the Melbourne Phoenix at 16, quickly earning recognition as the competition's best new talent for her athletic style of defence. Corletto made her Australian debut in 2007 against Jamaica and became one of the Diamonds' most reliable defensive players over a 12-year international career, despite injuries limiting more than half of her potential appearances. In 2009 she was awarded the Liz Ellis Diamond, Australian netball's most prestigious individual honour, after helping the Melbourne Vixens win the ANZ Championship premiership. Knee surgery cost her a place at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, but she recovered to win Commonwealth Games gold in 2014 in Glasgow. Corletto's career ended on the highest possible note: at the 2015 Netball World Cup in Sydney, she played through significant knee pain and a broken foot to help Australia win the title, retiring from international netball immediately afterwards and calling it the "sweetest possible ending" to her career. Domestically she played for Melbourne Phoenix, Melbourne Kestrels, Melbourne Vixens, Northern Mystics in New Zealand, and finished with NSW Swifts in 2015.

Athletic, combative defender known for aggressive one-on-one defence and reading the play

Remembered for her resilience and toughness, described by teammates as an inspiration for playing through significant physical pain in her final tournament

• Liz Ellis Diamond 2009
• World Cup Gold 2015
• Commonwealth Games Gold 2014
• ANZ Championship Premiership 2009 (Melbourne Vixens)