There are players who entertain, and there are players who define an era. Then, there was David Cooper—an artist with the ball at his feet, a player whose mastery of technique and vision ensured that his name would forever be etched into Scottish football history. A winger who thrived in an age when skill and guile were still revered, his career was one of flair, dedication, and silverware, yet tinged with the tragedy of a life cut short.

PART ONE

Born in Hamilton, David Cooper’s footballing story began in earnest at local side Hamilton Avondale. However, it wasn’t just the pitches of Lanarkshire where he honed his craft—by day, he was an apprentice printer, a reminder that the glamour of professional football was still some way off. Yet, talent rarely goes unnoticed, and in 1974, Clydebank—a Scottish Second Division club with grand ambitions—offered him a contract.

At Clydebank, Cooper wasted no time making an impression. Blessed with a wand of a left foot and a footballing brain that operated on a different wavelength to most, he quickly established himself as a key player. Moreover, he had an eye for goal, finishing as the club’s top scorer in his second full season. What’s more, his contributions helped Clydebank secure back-to-back promotions in the 1975–76 and 1976–77 seasons. Such performances inevitably attracted interest, and in the summer of 1977, the call of the big time came.

With clubs both north and south of the border circling, it was Rangers who won the race for his signature in June 1977, paying £100,000 for the gifted winger. It was a fee that spoke volumes about his burgeoning reputation, but what followed over the next 12 years would surpass even the wildest expectations.

Cooper was a player who could make defenders look foolish with the drop of a shoulder, who could deliver a cross with unerring accuracy, and who had an innate understanding of when to dazzle and when to dictate. His debut season saw him win the Scottish Premier Division title, and over the years, he would add two more league crowns in 1986-87 and 1988-89, along with three Scottish Cups and seven League Cups.

Yet, for all the trophies, David Cooper was about more than just silverware. He was an entertainer, a man who could silence a raucous crowd with a moment of pure magic. His performance in the 1987 League Cup Final against Aberdeen remains the stuff of legend—a goal and an assist that left the opposition in his wake, a display that encapsulated everything he was about. Similarly, his mesmerising goal against Celtic in 1979, a mazy dribble through a sea of defenders, is still replayed with reverence by Rangers supporters.

However, football is an unforgiving game, and as the years passed, the emergence of Graeme Souness as player-manager in 1986 brought change to Ibrox. Cooper, though still an exceptional talent, found himself increasingly on the periphery. And so, in 1989, he bid farewell to the club where he had become a legend.

PART TWO

For some players, moving from Rangers might feel like a step down, but for Cooper, his £50,000 transfer to Motherwell was a chance to write another glorious chapter. Under the guidance of Tommy McLean, he became the elder statesman, the guiding light for a team filled with potential yet lacking experience.

His influence was immediate, his quality undiminished. Even as age took away some of his acceleration, his footballing intelligence ensured he remained a step ahead of his opponents. And then, in 1991, he played a pivotal role in one of Motherwell’s greatest triumphs—the 4-3 victory over Dundee United in the Scottish Cup Final . It was a moment of sheer euphoria for the club and its supporters, but also a personal vindication for a player who had nothing left to prove yet continued to give everything for the game that he loved.

His genius was not confined to club football. Between 1979 and 1990, he won 22 caps for Scotland, hitting six goals. While his international career never quite mirrored his club exploits—often competing for a starting place against the likes of Kenny Dalglish and Gordon Strachan—his contributions were far from limited.

He was part of the squad for the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico, making two appearances on football’s grandest stage. And then there was his most famous moment in a Scotland shirt—a stunning free-kick against Wales in 1985, a goal that secured a 1-1 draw and sent Scotland to the World Cup. It was an effort of supreme technique, a strike that encapsulated everything about his left foot: precision, power, and artistry.

As his active playing days wound down, David Cooper returned to Clydebank in a player-assistant coach capacity. He had intended to retire at the end of the 1994-95 campaign, but fate had other plans. On the 22nd of March 1995, while filming a youth coaching programme at Broadwood Stadium in Cumbernauld, Cooper suffered a subarachnoid haemorrhage. He passed away the following day, at the age of just 39.

His death sent shockwaves through Scotland. A man who had given so much to the game, whose left foot had painted so many meorable moments, was gone far too soon. In recognition of his impact, he was posthumously inducted into the Scottish Football Hall of Fame, a fitting tribute to a player of his calibre.

Cooper was not just a footballer—he was an artist, a player who understood the beauty of the game, who relished the challenge of unlocking a defence with a flick, a feint, or a perfectly placed cross. He was the kind of player fans paid to watch, the kind whose highlights are replayed decades later with a sense of awe.