Sheffield United ‘lied’ to Maddy Cusack’s family in the wake of her death by claiming they were unaware of Jonathan Morgan’s reputation when appointing him, and later denied a request for counselling support, according to Maddy’s mother, Deborah Cusack.
Maddy was found dead at her family home in Horsley, Derbyshire, on 20 September 2023, at the age of 27. The inquest into the death of the former Sheffield United vice-captain, who was also the club’s longest-serving player, began on Monday.
Maddy’s father, David Cusack, claimed on Monday that Morgan’s appointment in February 2023 was the principal cause of the deterioration of her mental health, saying ‘everything goes back to that’, while Maddy’s girlfriend, Grace Riglar, said on Tuesday that it was her opinion that the club would have known about Morgan’s reputation prior to his appointment.
Maddy worked with Morgan at Leicester City before her move to Sheffield United in 2019, with Morgan subsequently following her to Sheffield United four years later. On Thursday, Deborah told the inquest that Morgan was like her daughter’s ‘nemesis’, who was referred to as a ‘prison warden’ in messages between team-mates.
Deborah alleged that Sheffield United had ignored Morgan’s reputation and subsequently lied to the family about this when CEO Stephen Bettis and head of HR Vicki Anderson visited the family a week after Maddy’s death.
In that meeting, Deborah said: ‘(Stephen) Bettis said he didn’t know anything about him (Morgan) whatsoever and his reputation. As did Vicki Anderson. From a mother to a mother.
Maddy Cusack’s mother accused Sheffield United of lying over the appointment of Jonathan Morgan
Deborah Cusack (left) gave evidence at the inquest into her daughter’s death on Thursday
‘They both lied to me and that is unforgivable because they both knew about his reputation. Mr Bettis referred to it in the FA report. They both knew about the grievance that had been lodged (against him previously) and they both knew about the difficulties.
‘At the time, I took it for what it’s worth, that it was simply the men’s team that they were bothered about. Why wouldn’t I believe him seven days after? I am devastated that in that moment they made me doubt my daughter and it’s appalling.’
The Football Association (FA) began its own investigation in January 2024, with the governing body saying at the time that its purpose was ‘to understand whether or not any further action is required under our jurisdiction within football’. The FA report was shared with the coroner a year later, but it will not be published until the inquest has concluded.
Two weeks prior to Maddy’s death, Deborah spoke to club doctor Subhashis Basu on the phone to request counselling for Maddy, in addition to the private medical services that they had already sought out themselves.
‘I asked (Dr Basu) if we could have some counselling and he said ‘No, not at the minute, that’s something to be discussed further down the line.’ I remember those words exactly because he made a pun on when you throw the football down the line (of the pitch). And I mouthed to Maddy ‘it’s a good job we have our own counsellor’.’
A note, which has been contested, states that on 6 September she was offered support through the PFA.
In a deeply moving several hours in which Maddy’s mother, Deborah, gave evidence to the court, she revealed how she had been ‘lied to’ by the club’s hierarchy.
Deborah, who described how she and Maddy would speak on the phone every evening and shared a bed together while Maddy was struggling with her mental health, spoke at length about the issues that were troubling her daughter in the final few weeks and months before her death.
In a highly charged exchange with Morgan, who is representing himself, Deborah told the former Sheffield United manager that Maddy ‘would be here today’ if it were not for his appointment. Morgan was sacked by Sheffield United in February 2024 when details emerged of a relationship with a teenage player while manager of Leicester City.
Riglar revealed on Tuesday that Morgan had arranged a meeting with herself and Maddy to establish three ‘rules’, including ‘not holding a grudge’ in the event that one of the pair found themselves ‘annoyed’ by Morgan.
Jonathan Morgan was told by Cusack’s mother that her daughter would still be alive had he not been appointed
Talking about the ‘cumulative’ incidents that harmed Maddy’s mental health, Deborah said to Morgan: ‘The worst one is the meeting about the rules on the relationship. Who are you to give rules on a relationship when you yourself had a relationship with one of your players? Who does that in the workplace? The footballing environment is just another workplace. That would’ve really done for Madeleine.
‘You need to understand I’m not blaming you for what she did but you made her feel how she felt. What happened to Madeleine is not a one-off. I didn’t make her feel like that. David didn’t. Richard, Olivia, Felicia (her three siblings) didn’t. It’s the little knocks every now and again.
‘You had to cut her down to size. I feel that you cut her down to size and there is a direct line. If you hadn’t been employed, which you should never have been, my daughter would be here today.
‘I will live with what I live with until the day I die, but I did not make her feel she had to give up her football or couldn’t be in that football environment. That’s what you did.’
Deborah told the inquest that players who were sidelined by Mr Morgan would send text messages between them to ‘get them through’ it.
She said: ‘They refer to them being in prison when sidelined, on parole when playing and Jonathan Morgan as a prison warden.
‘All of those players then left because they could. They didn’t have the ties that Madeleine did. She loved her (marketing) job and she loved playing for them.
‘She was literally on her own. I thought she felt lonely from that and isolated. By this time, she had no confidence in anything.’
Deborah also claimed that Sheffield United have attempted to ‘discredit’ Maddy by suggesting that she struggled to get on well with previous coaches prior to Morgan.
During questioning, Morgan asked whether he was the only coach with whom Maddy had experienced difficulties, referring to an alleged issue involving former manager Carla Ward.
Deborah rejected the suggestion, explaining that Maddy had actually been among a small group of players who refused to be involved in a grievance concerning Ward. Deborah said that Ward had subsequently praised Maddy for helping to defuse the situation.
‘Sheffield United have introduced this to try and discredit Maddy and it’s unforgivable,’ Deborah added.
Deborah also firmly refuted the notion, which had been widely reported on Wednesday, that Maddy ‘would still be here’ if Riglar, hadn’t moved away from Sheffield United at the end of the 2022-23 season, a remark made by her former team-mate Sophie Barker.
‘I do need to stress here that the narrative that if Grace hadn’t moved away then Madeleine still would have been here, that’s not true,’ she said.
‘That was the opinion of someone who had a fractured relationship with Maddy months before she moved away. That wasn’t fair on Grace, and that’s not right.’
Morgan is due to give evidence on Monday.
The inquest continues.
For confidential support call the Samaritans on 116123 or visit a local Samaritans branch, see www.samaritans.org for details
