Warning: This story contains discussion of suicide and information some readers may find distressing Two women, united in grief, are meeting for the first time. Debbie Beard lost her husband just over a year ago. Matt Beard, the former Liverpool Women manager, died in hospital on 20 September 2025.
He is believed to have taken his own life, though an inquest is yet to conclude. Amanda Thorpe's husband Graham, the former England and Surrey cricketer, took his own life in 2024. He had "spiralled into depression" after losing his job as a batting coach in 2022.
The two women, who had never met before, came together at an event launched by the Prince of Wales and the Royal Foundation to urge sport at every level to make suicide prevention part of its culture through a new nationwide toolkit. There they spoke to the BBC's business editor Simon Jack, who was 17 when his father took his own life. On Your Side, external is a set of resources available online that aims "to make suicide prevention as much a part of sport as warm-up, training and performance".
Amanda Thorpe has said previously she believes her husband would still be alive had he received more support from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) after leaving his coaching role. Following the inquest into his death, the ECB said it was "a profound tragedy" and added Thorpe's passing was a "stark reminder" of the challenges many face with mental health. Matt Beard died a month after leaving his role as manager of Burnley Women.
He had been in the post for only two months. When the inquest into his death was postponed indefinitely, Burnley said they were "aware of an ongoing legal process" and would "not be making any comment at this time". Amanda: "Graham had been struggling for the previous year to 18 months during Covid.
Graham didn't really like following rules and there were quite a few in Covid - like playing under bubble conditions. So he had been having some medication and therapy in his job. But then Graham lost his job and he didn't see it coming.
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