FA report into Maddy Cusack’s death to be shared with coroner this week
By the end of this week, a Football Association report is finished and will be given to a coroner about the
circumstances surrounding the death of former Sheffield United player Maddy Cusack.
Both the club’s current CEO, Stephen Bettis, and former Blades manager Jonathan Morgan attended Monday’s pre-
inquest review hearing into Cusack’s death at Chesterfield Coroners’ Court.
The Cusack family complained in writing to United about Morgan within a week of Maddy’s passing on September
20, 2023. The complaint listed a number of problems she had been having, many of which they said were related to
her relationship with Morgan.
The FA stated in January of last year that it had launched an investigation into the circumstances of Cusack’s death.
Stephen Walsh, the legal counsel for the governing body, said the court on Monday that the report was finished and
would be given to coroner Sophie Cartwright by Friday.
“Under FA regulations, we may make an overall observation to you that significant portions of the report are
pertinent to a disciplinary investigation,” Walsh continued.
“To understand whether or not any further action is required under our jurisdiction within football,” the FA stated
when the probe was first launched.
Walsh said the report was still being independently reviewed.
Sheffield United’s own investigation, which concluded in December 2023, found no evidence of wrongdoing.
United sacked Morgan in February last year after information came to light about a relationship he had with a player
while he was in charge at Leicester. His dismissal was not related to the FA investigation, but was welcomed by the
Cusack family.
Coroner Cartwright said on Monday that Morgan, along with the Cusack family, the FA and Sheffield United, had
been identified as “properly interested persons” in the inquest and would receive initial disclosure documents next
Monday.
Morgan questioned the coroner about whether a timetable or starting point for Cusack’s mental decline had been
decided upon.
Cusack’s father David added that the chronology should start in February 2023, the same month Morgan was hired
by Sheffield United, after the coroner stated that the family felt there had been a “cumulative effect.” That was the
starting point, and Morgan did not dispute it.
A preliminary list of witnesses who will testify at the inquest was also verified by the coroner. Morgan, former United
player Grace Riglar, United’s head of human resources Vicki Anderson, former club physio Francesca Carr, Maddy’s
parents David and Deborah, and witnesses from Sheffield United and the FA were all present.
The coroner verified that the two-day inquiry would start on April 16 and end on April 22, following the Easter Bank
Holiday weekend.
Last September, one year after her passing, the family released a statement.
“As we attempt to survive and navigate a world without our beloved Madeleine, we as a family remain steadfastly committed and determined to attain justice for Maddy,” the statement read, one year after he passed away.
“We want accountability, and truth is the first step towards that. The tragedy that befell our Madeleine ought to be above all else. Nothing should take precedence over the sanctity of life. We will always remember Madeleine.
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