Sheffield United inquest hears of manager's weight comments before player's death
An inquest into the death of footballer Maddy Cusack has heard allegations about her manager's conduct, raising pressing questions about workplace standards and duty of care in women's professional football.
Grace Riglar testified at Chesterfield coroner’s court that Jonathan Morgan, who managed Maddy Cusack, previously called her a "psycho" from the sidelines and made a comment referencing her weight. Cusack was found dead at her family home in Derbyshire on 20 September 2023, aged 27.
Riglar told the court that after Morgan made a comment about Cusack’s fitness or weight, her eating habits changed. "After that her eating habits changed a bit, [she made] slight tweaks in her habits that probably weren’t the healthiest," Riglar said. Morgan, who is representing himself at the inquest, challenged this by asking Riglar to confirm she did not personally recall him calling Cusack "fat", to which she replied: "No."
The hearings have exposed the working conditions at the club during a management transition. Cusack earned a combined £38,000 per year working roughly 50 hours a week across her playing duties and a marketing role. Riglar noted a stark contrast in culture between Morgan and his predecessor, Neil Redfearn, under whom there had been a "really good environment".
Riglar described how Morgan summoned players in relationships to a meeting to lay out rules. These included a stipulation that "if he was to be annoyed with any one of us, the other can’t hold a grudge against him". Cusack found the meeting uncomfortable, and when Morgan excluded her from his first match by claiming an injury, she viewed it as a "personal attack".
The inquest also raised questions about the club's support structures, with Riglar stating she "wouldn’t have known where to go to if I had any problems" at Sheffield United. By September 2023, Riglar noticed Cusack was "fidgety, very erratic and scrolling on Indeed looking at jobs", while her marketing line manager Eoin Doyle testified she had "sunken into herself" the month prior. When Cusack asked for time off in September, Doyle told her to "take as much time as you need".
Morgan had "expressed concern" about Cusack’s demeanour in the weeks before her death. Riglar told the coroner she believed Morgan’s arrival was a "big part" of the factors contributing to the tragedy. "You can’t blame one person but I do think that was a big reason," she said. The inquest continues on Wednesday, with Morgan scheduled to give evidence on Monday.
