Colin Terence Cooper (born 28 February 1967) is an English football manager and former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

. As a player, he was a defender who notably played in the

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

for

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is a professional association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Founde ...

and

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...

. He played over 500 league appearances combined for both clubs. He also played in the

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...

for both

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Poplar, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east of ...

and

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

. He was capped twice by

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, having previously earned eight games at U21 level. Following retirement, he moved into coaching and worked in the Middlesbrough academy, later progressing into the first team before taking charge on a temporary basis in 2009. He later moving to

Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The club competes in , the third tier of English football, and is managed by Graham Alexander. The club was founded in 1903 and ...

as assistant manager and then in 2013 becoming manager of

Hartlepool United Hartlepool United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Hartlepool, County Durham, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. They were founded in 190 ...

. In 2016 he joined the coaching staff of the England U21 setup under former teammate

Gareth Southgate Sir Gareth Southgate (born 3 September 1970) is an English professional Association football, football manager and player, who played as a Defender (association football), defender and midfielder. A Crystal Palace F.C., Crystal Palace Crystal ...

Playing career

He played as a centre back, but was equally useful at full-back. He spent the first seven years of his professional career contracted to

, making 188 league appearances and scoring six league goals in the process. During this time, he helped Middlesbrough through

liquidation Liquidation is the process in accounting by which a Company (law), company is brought to an end. The assets and property of the business are redistributed. When a firm has been liquidated, it is sometimes referred to as :wikt:wind up#Noun, w ...

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal en ...

. In the summer of 1991, he was transferred to Division Two side

for the sum of £300,000 spending two successful seasons at

The Den The Den (previously The New Den) is a football stadium in Bermondsey, south-east London, and the home of Millwall Football Club. The Den is adjacent to the South London railway originating at , and a quarter-of-a-mile from the Old Den, whic ...

. After impressing several big name clubs, he decided to move to

in 1993 for £1,700,000. It was at Forest where Colin arguably played the best football of his career, his form earning him two

caps in 1995 against

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

and

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. After experiencing the joys of two promotions and the heart-break of a relegation, "Super Coops" was re-purchased by his first club, Middlesbrough, in a £2,500,000 deal. Many people questioned the signing of the stalwart from Nottingham Forest, but Colin proved to many people that he was more than capable of playing

football. He maintained a consistent level of play throughout the seven years that he spent with Middlesbrough, and could always be relied upon to do a job. He almost gave up the game in 2002 after his son, Finlay, died in an accident at the family home just hours after their victory over Manchester United in the FA Cup. In 2003–04, he spent some time on loan with

. Cooper was part of Middlesbrough's 2004 League Cup-winning team. Despite not making the squad for the final he appeared in the earlier rounds. In 2005, Cooper was awarded a one-year contract extension, which saw him play at the age of 39. His final season with Middlesbrough, 2005–06, saw Boro reach the

2006 UEFA Cup Final The 2006 UEFA Cup Final was a association football, football match that took place at Philips Stadion in Eindhoven, Netherlands on 10 May 2006 as the culmination of the 2005–06 UEFA Cup. The match was contested by Middlesbrough F.C., Middlesbrou ...

. However, he made just one appearance all campaign, coming on as a late substitute on the last day of the season against

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...

International career

Cooper made his England international debut in a 3–3 draw against

. He gained two caps for the

national team and made eight caps for the Under-21 side where he finished runners-up with the U21s in the 1988 Tournoi Espoirs de Toulon tournament.

Managerial career

After he retired from playing, in June 2006, Cooper was officially given a job with the

coaching staff, as the Reserve team coach. Following Steve Round's departure from the club in December 2006, Cooper was promoted to a more active role with the first team. Following the departure of Malcolm Crosby on 17 June 2009, Cooper was promoted to assistant manager at Middlesbrough. On 22 October 2009, following the departure of manager

, Cooper was appointed caretaker manager at Middlesbrough. However, he was only employed in this position for four days, as

Gordon Strachan Gordon David Strachan ( born 9 February 1957) is a Scottish former football coach and player who is currently Technical Director of Dundee. He played for Dundee, Aberdeen, Manchester United, Leeds United and Coventry City, as well as the Sc ...

was announced as the new manager on 26 October. Cooper's solitary match in charge was a 2–2 draw with

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional association football club in Preston, Lancashire, England. They currently play in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English footbal ...

on 24 October 2009. In May 2010, Cooper was relieved of all duties at Middlesbrough by Strachan. On 9 March 2011, Cooper was appointed as assistant to interim manager

Peter Jackson Sir Peter Robert Jackson (born 31 October 1961) is a New Zealand filmmaker. He is best known as the director, writer, and producer of the ''Lord of the Rings'' trilogy (2001–2003) and the ''Hobbit'' trilogy (2012–2014), both of which ar ...

at League Two side

. Jackson was subsequently appointed full-time manager on 25 May 2011, but he resigned on 25 August 2011, resulting in Cooper taking over as caretaker manager. winning his first game 4–2 against Barnet.

Phil Parkinson Philip John Parkinson (born 1 December 1967) is an English professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. He is the manager of club Wrexham. Parkinson acquired a Social Science degree early into his career as a man ...

was appointed as Jackson's permanent successor, and on 8 September 2011, Cooper left Bradford to rejoin Middlesbrough and take up a coaching role with Middlesbrough's under-18 side. On 24 May 2013, he became manager at

Football League Two The English Football League Two, simply known as League Two and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet League Two, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League Two is the fourth division of the English Football League (EFL ...

side

, replacing

John Hughes John Hughes may refer to: Arts and Entertainment Literature *John Hughes (poet) (1677–1720), English poet *John Hughes (1790–1857), English author *John Ceiriog Hughes (1832–1887), Welsh poet *John Hughes (writer) (born 1961), Australian au ...

, who had been sacked the previous month. He named fellow ex-Middlesbrough player

Craig Hignett Craig Hignett (born 12 January 1970) is an English former professional footballer who played as a striker and later in his career as a midfielder. Born in Whiston, he started his senior club career with Crewe Alexandra in 1988. After making ...

as his assistant manager. After winning four out of five league games in October, Cooper won the Sky Bet League Two Manager of the Month Award. Cooper resigned as Hartlepool United manager on 4 October 2014, after a 3–0 home defeat by

Carlisle United Carlisle United Football Club ( , ) is a professional association football club based in Carlisle, Cumbria, England. The team currently compete in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system. They have played their ...

, which left the club at the bottom of the League Two table. In April 2016, Cooper joined

's coaching staff with the England U21s.

Media work

Cooper was a regular guest on the ITV late night football review programme '' Soccer Night'', which was hosted by Roger Tames. During this programme, three legendary figures, representing one of each of the North-East's top three clubs (

, and

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...

), come to the studio and discuss recent footballing events.

Personal life

In 2006, Colin and his wife Julie, formed the charity the Finlay Cooper Fund, named after his son who died in a tragic accident in 2002, which raises money for children's causes. In 2013, Colin and 12 others (which included

and

Jeff Stelling Robert Jeffrey Stelling (born 18 March 1955) is an English television presenter. He presented '' Gillette Soccer Saturday'' for Sky Sports from 1994 until 2023 and hosted coverage of the Champions League between 2011 and 2015. He also present ...

) climbed

Mount Kilimanjaro Mount Kilimanjaro () is a dormant volcano in Tanzania. It is the highest mountain in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain above sea level in the world, at above sea level and above its plateau base. It is also the highest volcano i ...

for charity; the climb raised £100,000.

Career statistics

Playing career

''Statistics for league appearances only''

Managerial career

Honours

Player

Middlesbrough * Second Division promotion: 1987–88 * Third Division runner-up: 1986–87 *

Football League Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

: 2003–04 *

Zenith Data Systems Cup The Full Members' Cup was an association football cup competition held in English football from 1985 to 1992. It was also known under its sponsored names of the Simod Cup from 1987 to 1989 and the Zenith Data Systems Cup from 1989 to 1992. T ...

runner-up: 1989–90 Nottingham Forest * First Division: 1997–98; runner-up: 1993–94 England U21s *Tournoi Espoirs de Toulon runner-up: 1988 Individual *

PFA Team of the Year The Professional Footballers' Association Team of the Year (often called the PFA Team of the Year, or simply the Team of the Year) is an annual award given to a set of 55 footballers across the top four tiers of men's Football in England, En ...

: 1992–93 First Division, 1993–94 First Division, 1997–98 First Division

Manager

Individual *

Manager of the Month Award: October

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Colin 1967 births Living people Footballers from Durham, England English men's footballers Men's association football central defenders Middlesbrough F.C. non-playing staff Middlesbrough F.C. players Millwall F.C. players Nottingham Forest F.C. players Sunderland A.F.C. players England men's under-21 international footballers England men's international footballers Premier League players Middlesbrough F.C. managers Bradford City A.F.C. managers Hartlepool United F.C. managers English Football League managers English football managers English Football League players