The chaplain of Sheffield United quit the club in a resignation letter stating he had felt ignored and let down by senior officials — including when he was trying to help Maddy Cusack’s colleagues cope with their grief.
Dr Delroy Hall stood down at the end of November, two months after Cusack died, and explained his reasons in a resignation letter — widely distributed within the Premier League and Women’s Championship club — which also asked whether his skin colour had contributed to the way he perceived he had been treated over a number of years.
Contacted by The Athletic, Hall said he had often felt ignored by people at the top of the club and “totally excluded” when it came to the in-house response to the death of Cusack, a player for their women’s team, on September 20.
“You would have thought, with something like this, it was made for, ‘Del, could you be the interface between the club and the family?’. But there was not a dickie bird,” Hall said.
“I said (to the club), ‘Look, I’ve been involved in stuff like this for 30 years. I’m not asking for the limelight or to be the centre of attention but if I can offer any support, just let me know.’ I knew straight away it was going in one ear and out the other. They had no interest in getting me involved whatsoever.”
Responding to some of the points raised in his letter, Sheffield United said: “After the tragic passing of our much-loved colleague Maddy Cusack, we enlisted the support of external trained counsellors, recommended by the Football Association, who were available on the ground and over the phone. Several colleagues took advantage of this support and continue to work with these trained, dedicated people who are supporting them through their grief.”
Delroy Hall quit his chaplain’s role at Sheffield United (Delroy Hall)
Cusack’s death sent shockwaves throughout the sport and left Sheffield United mourning their longest-serving player. Cusack, who doubled up as a marketing executive for the club, was found at her parents’ house in the county of Derbyshire, which is immediately south of Sheffield. The police say there are no suspicious circumstances.
An inquest was opened in October and, in a seven-page dossier delivered to the club, her family have outlined the reasons why they believe the 27-year-old took her own life. An external inquiry, commissioned by Sheffield United, investigated the behaviour of their women’s team manager Jonathan Morgan and found no evidence of wrongdoing.
In Hall’s resignation letter, he said he was filled with “deep sadness” to leave a position he had held since 2017, having devoted endless hours to helping players and staff cope with “some of life’s difficult, dark and painful moments”.
It was an important role, he wrote, highlighting how his predecessor, Nigel Manges, had helped colleagues after Gary Speed, the club’s former manager, died by suicide in 2011. However, Hall went on to say he had repeatedly been ignored by senior club officials and that everything reached a head when he wrote an article, as an experienced counsellor, to help Cusack’s colleagues through the grieving process.
Hall said he forwarded the article to the Sheffield United Community Foundation, that it was “gratefully received” and the organisation distributed it to foundation staff. However, he also sent it to United’s HR department for it to be approved, in line with club protocol, and then shared inside the club. When he heard nothing back over the following weeks, that was “the final straw”, he said, and led to him challenging the club about why, in his opinion, it was part of a wider pattern.
“I was informed it was due to busyness. I did get an apology, but I said I had arrived at my own conclusions why my correspondence had not been addressed,” Hall wrote. “First, presumed incompetence — there was a consensus I was ‘only’ a chaplain and therefore had nothing of value to bring to the club. Second, there was a bias against me being a chaplain. Third, it was due to my race.”
The club have responded by saying they are “disappointed that Dr Hall’s resignation letter notes he considers his race may have been a factor in his experience of his role. No such concerns were raised during the time Dr Hall volunteered at the club and we firmly deny he has been discriminated against in any manner.”
According to Hall, he was informed the following month that the club did not think the role of chaplain was “relevant” and that his position would be reviewed at the end of the season. He was “deeply disappointed” to be told that meant he could leave and they had “decided to do away with chaplaincy, that has been a feature of the club for over 40 years”. Hall felt that it was not worth him sticking around in those circumstances.
Maddy Cusack’s death sent shockwaves through football (Charlotte Tattersall/Getty Images)
His letter was addressed to the club’s senior leadership team and recalled a previous occasion when he raised questions about the makeup of their EDI (equality, diversion and inclusion) team, asking whether it was a true reflection on “the cultural diversity of the city of Sheffield”. That was, he said, the only time he could remember receiving a reply.
Responding via a club statement, Sheffield United said they were “saddened” to read the resignation letter because they had regarded the chaplain as a “valued member of the club”.
Acknowledging his work in Sheffield, the statement added: “The club would like to thank Dr Hall for his support in his volunteer role and wish him the very best of luck with his future endeavours.”
However, the Yorkshire club also expressed disappointment that his letter did not recognise the “current high standards and continuous improvement” of their EDI team, having recently achieved intermediate level in the Premier League EDI standard (PLEDIS). They added: “Promoting and supporting good mental health and wellbeing are both major considerations within the club’s EDI working group.
“As part of the commitment to EDI, and having regard to the broad spectrum of faiths held by those involved with the club, we are in the process of exploring our support offering. The club discussed his voluntary role with Dr Hall and how it may develop under the evolving approach. Unfortunately, views were not aligned.”
In what doubled up as a farewell to colleagues, Hall stated in his resignation letter that he had written more than 150 letters to players, staff, stewards, fans and other people connected with the club who had needed emotional support. He had officiated at several funerals and helped people cope with illness, bereavement, relationship problems and mental health issues. It was all done on a voluntary basis, as well as making countless phone calls, emails, text messages and house, hospital or prison visits.
“I have met with players off-site who wanted to talk with me privately,” Hall wrote. “Some time ago, I was informed by a member of staff that during lockdown I was the only one from the club who kept in regular contact with them and their team.”
Concluding his letter, he added: “Currently, there are 81 chaplains across the four divisions (of English men’s professional football), so Sheffield United will be one of the minority of clubs who no longer offer that support for players, staff and fans.
“I bear no anger, malice or resentment to anyone, or the decision that has been made, but I am saddened and deeply disappointed. I leave the club with my head held high.”
(Top photo: George Wood/Getty Images)
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