Maddy Cusack
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Madeleine Cusack (28 October 1995 – 20 September 2023) was an English
footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...
who played as a midfielder. Born in Nottingham, England, she began her career with local club
Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is a professional association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Founde ...
before moving to
Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...
, where she made her professional debut. She joined
Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. The team compete in the ...
in 2017 and spent a year there before moving to
Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...
in 2018. She moved to
Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history ...
in January 2019. She played for England U19s at international level. Cusack died by suicide in September 2023. In January 2024,
the Football Association The Football Association (the FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest footb ...
opened a formal investigation into her death after reports of wrongdoing by her club manager.


Education and club career

Cusack attended the
University of Derby The University of Derby, formerly known as Derby College, is a public university in the city of Derby, England. It traces its history back to the establishment of the Derby Diocesan Institution for the training of schoolmistresses in 1851. It ...
where she achieved a first-class honours degree in marketing, public relations, and advertising. She started playing football at the age of five and started her career at
Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is a professional association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Founde ...
academy, before transferring to
Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...
in 2012, she made her senior debut there in the
FA Women's League Cup The Women's League Cup, also known as the Subway Women's League Cup due to sponsorship reasons, is a league cup competition in English women's association football. The competition was originally open to the eight teams in the FA WSL, but since t ...
in 2014. In 2017, she joined
Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. The team compete in the ...
, then played for
Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...
a year later. She moved to
Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history ...
in January 2019, under head coach Carla Ward. Eighteen months later, she renewed her contract with the club, and subsequently became the first player to reach 100 appearances for Sheffield United. In 2021, the club's manager,
Neil Redfearn Neil David Redfearn (born 20 June 1965) is an English football coach and former player who was most recently the manager of Farsley Celtic. Redfearn, a midfielder, played 790 matches in the Football League, the sixth highest total of all time, ...
, described Cusack as "a great trainer, a real asset of the club and... someone who wants to get better and wants to drive on". Cusack went on to become a marketing executive at Sheffield United alongside her career as a footballer. She signed a new one-year contract with the club in July 2023. A month later, she was named vice-captain of the club.


International career

Cusack was called up for England U19 during the 2013 UEFA Championship qualifying round, but she was not named in the squad for the final tournament. A year later, she was selected for the 2014 Championship, where she played in all group stage matches.


Death

Cusack died on 20 September 2023, at the age of 27 by suicide. At the time of her death she was the longest-serving player in the Sheffield United women's squad. On 24 September, a
minute's silence A moment of silence (also referred to as a minute's silence or a one-minute silence) is a period of silent contemplation, prayer, reflection, or meditation. Similar to flying a flag at half-mast, a moment of silence is often a gesture of ...
was held for Cusack before
Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history ...
's
Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
game against
Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...
. Cusack was also shown on the front cover of the
matchday programme A matchday programme or match programme is a Programme (booklet), booklet associated with a live sporting event which details the proposed starting lineup and other details of the match. To some spectators, the purchase of a matchday programme is ...
. Wreaths were laid outside
Bramall Lane Bramall Lane is a association football, football stadium in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which is the home of Sheffield United F.C., Sheffield United. The stadium was originally a cricket ground, built on a road named after the Bramall ...
by supporters and Newcastle co-owner,
Amanda Staveley Amanda Louise Staveley (born 11 April 1973) is a British business executive. She is notable chiefly for her connections with Middle Eastern investors. She helped lead the Saudi consortium take over of Newcastle United. A deal that was comple ...
, and on the pitch by Cusack's family, club captain Sophie Brown and former player Tony Currie. The crowd also applauded in the 8th minute, representing Cusack's squad number. A further minute's silence was held at the
City Ground The City Ground is a association football, football stadium in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England, on the banks of the River Trent. It has been home to Nottingham Forest F.C., Nottingham Forest since 1898 and has a capacity of 30,455. ...
on 1 October before the
Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
game between
Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is a professional association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Founde ...
and
Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West (London sub region), West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the River Thames, Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has dive ...
as Cusack had started her career there in the youth team of Nottingham Forest Women. Within a week of her death, her family wrote to her club where they outlined a range of issues they stated she had been facing due to a poor relationship with the club's manager, Jonathan Morgan. On 28 November, Sheffield United agreed to an external inquiry into events that led to Cusack's death, with her family claiming her spirit had been "broken" from February 2023 and in the months leading up to her death, despite no previous long-standing mental health issues. On 19 December, it was reported that the inquiry, led by retired detective superintendent Dennis Shotton, found no evidence of wrongdoing at Sheffield United. In January 2024, it was reported that
the Football Association The Football Association (the FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest footb ...
had begun gathering evidence ahead of a possible investigation of its own. On 25 January, the FA opened a formal investigation into her death.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cusack, Maddy 1995 births 2023 deaths Footballers from Nottingham English women's footballers Women's association football midfielders Sheffield United F.C. Women players Aston Villa W.F.C. players Birmingham City W.F.C. players Nottingham Forest Women F.C. players Leicester City W.F.C. players Women's Super League 2 players England women's youth international footballers Women's Super League players Alumni of the University of Derby 2023 suicides Suicides in England 21st-century English sportswomen