Former Sheffield United midfielder Maddy Cusack’s coach had called her a “psycho” and was playing mind games with her before her death, an inquest has heard.
Chesterfield Coroner’s Court heard that Jonathan Morgan also made comments about Cusack’s weight and relationship while he was the manager of United’s women’s team, which made her feel uncomfortable.
The 27-year-old was found unconscious by her father at their family home in Horsley, Derbyshire, on September 20 2023, and she died the same day.
Fellow professional Grace Riglar, who played for United at the same time as Cusack and was in a relationship with her, said the player was “anxious” about Morgan joining the club in February 2023 after her experience of working with him at Leicester years earlier.
She told the inquest on Tuesday: “I think it was stuff she told me about her previous experience prior to Jonathan coming to Sheffield.
“I think she said that they played a game against a team while Jonathan was the manager. She had done something on the pitch and Jonathan called her a psycho from the sideline.
“I don’t think she let anyone know those types of comments affected her but they did and they made her uncomfortable.”
She said Morgan joining United was a big cause of Cusack’s stress, which coincided with her being unhappy there.
Riglar added that Cusack thought the coach made a “personal attack” on her by not putting her in the starting line-up for matches.
She told the court: “She was used to starting every game, she was an important member of the team. When Jonathan came, she was in and out from the starting team a bit.
“Her going from starting to being on the bench quite a lot, she saw that as a setback. That impacted her a lot.
“I just think she almost felt like it was a bit of a personal attack and that Jonathan was playing mind games with her by starting her one week and dropping her the next.
“She just felt those little things were intentional.”
Riglar told the inquest that Morgan also made comments about Cusack’s relationship with her.
When Morgan joined United, Riglar said, he told the players in the first meeting that if anyone was in a relationship within the team, they had to tell him.
Riglar said: “She found it uncomfortable when Jonathan would call me ‘Mrs Cusack’, especially in front of other players.
“We wanted to keep our relationship very professional. The football side and relationship side were very separate.”
Riglar told the court that Morgan made a comment about Cusack’s weight and she changed her eating and exercise habits, including by not eating carbohydrates, skipping breakfast and going for extra runs after training.
Riglar added: “She was one of the fittest players on the team anyway.”
The footballer told the coroner that Cusack had become “paranoid” at the start of the new season.
She added: “She didn’t really have anyone she could speak to without it getting back to Jonathan.”
The inquest heard Cusack had a sick note from a doctor to have time off football and her marketing job at United.
She had also been prescribed anti-anxiety medication, the inquest has been told.
Cusack told her girlfriend before her death that she wanted to move to Dubai and be a flight attendant, and had been looking for a new job online.
Riglar told the coroner: “She didn’t want to go back to playing football. I don’t think she really knew how to get out of that situation.”
The inquest continues.
