Kevin Cooper (footballer)

Infobox Football biography
playername = Kevin Cooper


fullname =
height = height|ft=5|in=8
nickname =
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1975|2|8
cityofbirth = Derby
countryofbirth = England
currentclub = Newport County
clubnumber = TBA
position = Midfielder
youthyears = 1993–1995
youthclubs = Derby County
years = 1995–1997
1997
1997–2001
2001–2002
2002–2005
2004
2004
2005–2008
2007
2007
2007
2008
2008–
clubs = Derby County
→ Stockport County (loan)
Stockport County
Wimbledon
Wolverhampton Wanderers
→ Sunderland (loan)
→ Norwich City (loan)
Cardiff City
→ Yeovil Town (loan)
→ Walsall (loan)
→ Tranmere Rovers (loan)
Chesterfield
Newport County
caps(goals) = 002 0(0)
012 0(3)
155 (18)
051 (13)
062 0(9)
001 0(0)
010 0(0)
040 0(2)
004 0(0)
007 0(0)
004 0(0)
007 0(1)
005 0(1)
pcupdate = 24 September 2008

Kevin Cooper (born February 8, 1975 in Derby) is an English footballer who plays for Newport County in the Conference South.

Playing career

Cooper began his career as a trainee at Derby County but managed only five first team appearances for the club in total. His league debut came on 7 May 1995, as a substitute in a 2-1 defeat at Watford. In Spring 1997, he found an opportunity for first team football when he was taken on loan at First Division Stockport County.

The midfielder joined the Edgeley Park club permanently in Summer 1997 for £150,000, where he went on to make 173 appearances in total over almost four seasons. He eventually moved to Wimbledon in March 2001 for £800,000. [cite news|publisher=BBC Sport|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_1/1222123.stm|title=Cooper in shock Wimbledon switch|date=15 March 2001] He stayed a year with the Dons, notching his best seasonal goal tally of 10 during the 2001/02 season. However, he ended the season by being signed by his former Stockport manager Dave Jones, by now at Wolverhampton Wanderers, for £1million in March 2002. [cite news|publisher=BBC Sport|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/w/wimbledon/1895089.stm|title=Cooper signs for Wolves|date=27 March 2002] He won the fans' player of the year award at Wimbledon and was presented with it on the pitch at Molineux playing for his new team.

He joined Wolves primarily to replace the then-injured Mark Kennedy, and played the remainder of the 2001/02 season as Wolves dropped into the play-offs, where they lost to Norwich City, despite Cooper scoring a spectacular long range goal in the second leg. He then featured regularly, although not a first choice player, throughout the following season as the team won promotion to the Premier League.

Cooper didn't get to enjoy the top flight though, save one substitute appearance against Charlton, the only Premier League appearance of his career. He spent the later half of the season on loan at second tier clubs Sunderland [cite news|publisher=BBC Sport|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/s/sunderland/3372447.stm|title=Black Cats sign Cooper|date=4 January 2004] and, later, Norwich City, [cite news|publisher=BBC Sport|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/n/norwich/3550381.stm|title=Norwich seal Cooper deal|date=19 March 2004] where he won a championship medal as the Canaries won the division.

He returned to Wolves, post-relegation, and found himself back in the side during the 2004/05 season. However, he requested a transfer for more playing time, [cite news|publisher=BBC Sport|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/w/wolverhampton_wanderers/4579363.stm|title=Wolves grant Cooper move request|date=25 May 2005] and was signed again by Dave Jones in July 2005, newly-appointed at fellow Championship club Cardiff City. [cite news|publisher=BBC Sport|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/cardiff_city/4697199.stm|title=Purse heads triple Cardiff swoop|date=26 July 2005]

He was a regular player in his first season at Ninian Park but fell out of favour in the following years and was loaned out to Yeovil Town and Walsall during the 2006-07 season and was subsequently placed on the transfer list at the end of the season.

He stayed at Cardiff through the summer but again found himself only in the reserve squad at the start of the year, so he joined League One side Tranmere Rovers on a one-month loan in October 2007. [cite news|publisher=BBC Sport|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/t/tranmere_rovers/7061697.stm|title=Tranmere recruit Cardiff winger|date=25 October 2007] After returning to his parent club, he was given a send-off game against Welshpool Town in the FAW Premier Cup, his first game for over a year for the "Bluebirds".

His contract at Cardiff was terminated by mutual consent on 1 February 2008, so that Cooper would have a better chance of finding a new side. One week later, he joined Chesterfield until the end of the season, [cite news|publisher=BBC Sport|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/chesterfield/7234453.stm|title=Spireites swoop for winger Cooper|date=8 February 2008] where he made a goalscoring debut. However, this deal was not extended at its conclusion.

He signed with Conference South team Newport County on 15 July 2008.

References

External links

*Soccerbase|1638|Kevin Cooper
* [http://www.ex-canaries.co.uk/players/cooper-kevin.htm Career information at ex-canaries.co.uk]