Davie Cooper
Scottish footballer
Died when: 39 years 26 days (468 months)Star Sign: Pisces
David Cooper (25 February 1956 – 23 March 1995) was a Scottish professional football player who played as a winger.Born in Hamilton, Cooper played as a youth for local side Hamilton Avondale, whilst also working as an apprentice printer for the club's owners.
His talents were noticed by numerous top-flight clubs both in Scotland and England.Cooper chose to sign for Scottish Second Division side Clydebank in 1974, beginning his career as a professional footballer.
Cooper continued to show potential at Clydebank, finishing as the club's top scorer in his second full season at Kilbowie Park and helping the club achieve successive league promotions in 1975–76 and 1976–77.
Cooper signed for Rangers in June 1977 for a fee of £100,000 at the age of 21.The next 12 years would see him become a Rangers stalwart, playing 540 games and winning numerous trophies with the Ibrox club, including the Scottish Premier Division in 1977–78, 1986–87 and 1988–89.
In August 1989, Tommy McLean signed Cooper for Motherwell for a fee of £50,000.He played over 150 times for the Steelmen and was part of the team that won the 1991 Scottish Cup Final against Dundee United.
Cooper also represented the Scotland national football team from 1979 to 1990, in which he was capped 22 times and scored 6 goals.During this time, he represented Scotland at the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico, making two appearances for the national team at the tournament.
In his later career, Cooper returned to Clydebank in the capacity of a player/assistant coach.He intended to retire as a player at the end of the 1995 season, however on 22 March 1995 he suffered a subarachnoid hemorrhage at Broadwood Stadium in Cumbernauld whilst filming Shoot, a youth coaching television programme.
He died the following day at the age of 39.An inductee of the Scottish Football Hall of Fame, Cooper is regarded by many as having been one of Scottish football's greatest talents.
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