Doyle said Maddy had spoken to him about several matters: her housing situation and possibly selling her home, feeling it was time to have a long-term partner, her desire to advance in her marketing career, that football felt “different” now, and other “personal stuff.”
He recalled Maddy asking whether returning to a full-time role in the marketing team was an option, and he told her it was.
He described his conversation with Cusack as “concerning, not alarming.”
Around that time, he noticed she generally seemed anxious—for example, “fretting” that she might have parked in a cycle lane—which didn’t feel like the Maddy he knew.
Doyle also said Morgan spoke to him then and, while discussing their concerns about her, referred to Cusack as “love sick,” a comment linked to Riglar’s recent move from United to another club.
When Morgan, representing himself at the inquest, asked if Doyle saw the “love sick” remark as malicious, Doyle said he did not. “I took it as concern, but still think it was ill-judged,” he said.
The court also heard about her workload and pay, with a combined salary of £28,000 for both roles.
Dean Armstrong KC, for the family, said Cusack worked 28 hours in marketing and 22 hours playing football. “What was being asked of Maddy here is a 50-hour week. That would put her outside the Working Time Directive,” he said.
Doyle said that after Cusack went off sick on 6 September, he spoke with HR about how they could adjust her role to support her.
He added he never thought she would harm herself and that she had given no indication she would.
The inquest continues.