Maddy Proud

Australian midcourter and NSW Swifts captain who won two premierships despite a season-ending ACL injury, and later authored a young-adult novel about netball.

Maddy Proud was born on 4 December 1993 in Adelaide. She joined the Adelaide Thunderbirds in the ANZ Championship at just 16, becoming the youngest player contracted to a professional netball team at the time, and went on to captain Australia's under-21 team to a silver medal at the World Youth Netball Cup. Proud moved to Sydney to join the NSW Swifts for the inaugural 2017 Suncorp Super Netball season, winning the club's MVP award and Members' Player of the Year in her debut year. She was appointed Swifts captain in February 2019 and led the club to the Super Netball title that year despite suffering a season-ending ACL injury, then captained the side to a second premiership in 2021 after recovering to full fitness. Proud made her Australian Diamonds debut in 2022 after earlier representing the country at Fast5 level, and has continued as an NSW Swifts co-captain and centurion for the club, taking maternity leave in 2025 following the birth of her first child before returning for the 2026 season. Away from the court, she completed a Master of Creative Writing at Macquarie University and published the young-adult novel Grace on the Court, drawing on her own netball experiences, and serves as inaugural Puppet Ambassador for the children's charity Camp Quality.

Fast-handed, passionate midcourter with strong leadership qualities and the ability to change games through speed and drive

Regarded as one of the heartbeats of the NSW Swifts, celebrated for her passion, leadership and creative pursuits beyond the court

• 2x Suncorp Super Netball Premiership (2019, 2021, as captain)
• NSW Swifts Centurion
• Published author of Grace on the Court
• Australian Diamonds squad member (2022-)