Inquest hears coach Jonathan Morgan 'played mind games' with Maddy Cusack before her death

An inquest at Chesterfield Coroner’s Court heard on Tuesday that Sheffield United Women coach Jonathan Morgan made comments about Maddy Cusack’s weight and repeatedly changed her starting status in what her partner described as deliberate “mind games”, contributing to a period of severe anxiety before Cusack’s death in September 2023.

Cusack, 27, was found unconscious by her father David at the family home in Horsley, Derbyshire, on 20 September 2023, and died later that day. The inquest heard she had feared being stigmatised and ridiculed at the club in the weeks leading up to her death.

Grace Riglar, who was in a relationship with Cusack, told the court that much of her partner’s stress stemmed from Morgan joining Sheffield United. Cusack had previously worked under Morgan at Leicester City, and Riglar said she was already anxious about his arrival before he took charge of the Women’s side.

“She had done something on the pitch and Jonathan called her a psycho from the sideline,” Riglar told the inquest, recounting an incident from Cusack’s time at Leicester. “I don’t think she let anyone know those types of comments affected her. But they did and they made her uncomfortable.”

Riglar said Cusack, who had previously started every match, found herself rotating in and out of the starting eleven under Morgan and interpreted the pattern as intentional. “She just felt those little things were intentional,” Riglar said. “That Jonathan was playing mind games with her by starting her one week and dropping her the next.”

The inquest also heard that Morgan made comments about Cusack’s weight, prompting her to change her eating habits — skipping breakfast, cutting out carbohydrates and adding extra runs after training sessions. Morgan also asked players to disclose any relationships when he joined the club and subsequently referred to Riglar as “Mrs Cusack” on a regular basis, something Cusack found uncomfortable given her wish to keep her professional and personal lives separate.

Before her death, Cusack had been signed off by her doctor from both playing football and her full-time marketing role at Sheffield United. Riglar told the inquest that Cusack had spoken about moving to Dubai to work as a flight attendant and had been searching online for a new job, indicating she wanted to step away from the sport entirely.

The inquest at Chesterfield Coroner’s Court is ongoing.