Everyone reaped benefits of playing beside Coop
.. he was an inspiration who turned an average player into a very good one
AS the world worries and wonders about the future, football is remembering Davie Cooper – a man whose magic lit up the game until it was taken away 25 years ago.
The Rangers hero who went on to star for Motherwell having first wowed Clydebank fans, passed away on March 23, 1995 after a brain haemorrhage.
It shocked everyone. A dazzling player who had won titles, cups and international honours was taken too young especially as it was his skill that brought the real joy.
He made 540 appearances for Rangers between 1977 and 1989 and won three league championships, three Scottish Cups and the League Cup seven times.
He then played a leading role with Motherwell who famously won the Scottish Cup in 1991.
Bobby Russell was with him virtually all of the way.
Russell said: “I got a trial for Clydebank in 1977 because Jack Steedman was keen to sign me to play alongside Coop.
“But a week later I was given a trial at Rangers. They offered terms and I snapped them up. Not long after that Coop joined me at Ibrox.
“It was strange how it happened and maybe we were destined to play together. We went on to be team-mates at Motherwell too so we played together most of our careers.
“He was a very talented player who could change games with his skill but also the way he allowed room for others by taking a couple of the opposition out of position.
“With a quick reverse pass, you’d suddenly find yourself in the clear. We worked well and had a good understanding.
“Davie also improved players around him. You just have to look at Jim Bett when he was at Rangers and then later Ian Durrant – they both loved playing with Coop.
“And it was the same at Motherwell where he brought on Tom Boyd and Phil O’Donnell and improved their games. They reaped benefits of playing beside Coop because he brought the best out in players.
“Simply having him in the team injected confidence into everyone else because we knew he was capable of something special that could change the game in an instant. He was an inspiration and he turned average players into very good ones.”
The signing of Cooper and Russell as well as Gordon Smith helped turn Rangers into Treble winners for the second time in three seasons in 1978. Russell said: “The first season at Ibrox was unbelievable. We were the three extra parts of the jigsaw because a very strong team was already there.
“There were so many guys who had been over the course – Peter McCloy, John Greig, Sandy Jardine, Alex MacDonald, Tommy McLean – so if you couldn’t play with them there was something wrong.”
Rangers’ luck changed in the early 1980s but Cooper was reinvigorated when Graeme Souness took over in 1986, helping to deliver title glory and League Cup success
By the summer of 1989, Mark Walters had become the regular left winger and Trevor Steven was on his way to play on the right so one of the most astute transfers in history was about to unfold.
Russell said: “I had gone to Motherwell in 1987 and Coop joined me two years later in what has to be the steal of the century in terms of a transfer fee. He was friendly with Tommy and they used to go out together for dinner.
“Coop was becoming a squad player at Rangers and he was the type who wanted to play every week. So, almost tongue in cheek, wee Tam put in a £50,000 bid and it was accepted. We couldn’t believe it.
“It was fantastic. Motherwell were a good side and it all came together in the Scottish Cup in 1991 when we won arguably the best final of all time beating Dundee United 4-3.”
He was a very talented player who could change games with his skill BOBBY RUSSELL