The coach called Maddie Cusack a ‘psycho’, an inquest said.

Former Sheffield United player Maddie Cusack called her a “psycho” and played mind games with her before her death, an inquest heard.

Cusack, 27, was found unconscious by her father David at their family home in Horsley, Derbyshire on September 20, 2023. He died on the same day.

An inquest at Chesterfield Coroner’s Court heard on Tuesday that Jonathan Morgan made comments about Cusack’s weight and her relationship when he was manager of Sheffield United’s women’s team.

Grace Riglar, who played for the team and had a relationship with Cusack, was concerned about Morgan joining the club after Cusack had experience working with him at Leicester City.

In response to the question, he said: “I think it’s something Jonathan told me about her past experience before coming to Sheffield.

She did something on the field when Jonathan said they played a game with the team as a manager and Jonathan called her a psychologist off the field.

“I don’t think she let anyone know that those kinds of comments affected her, but they did and they made her uncomfortable.”

In response, Morgan said joining United was a big reason for Cusack’s anxiety.

Riglar added that Cusack was left out of the starting lineup for matches because he felt the coach had made a “personal attack” on her.

She said, “She used to start every game, she was an important member of the team, she was in and out of the starting team when Jonathan came.”

“From the beginning, coming to the bench was seen as a lot of … a hurdle. That affected her a lot.

“I think she felt it was a bit of a personal attack, and Jonathan was playing mind games on her, going from leaving her one week to leaving her the next.

“She felt that these little things were created on purpose.”