Дэви Купер: «Рейнджерстен» шығу және «Мзеруэлл» сапындағы табыс жолы

Scottish footballer

Following the Souness Revolution at Ibrox and an influx of high profile signings, Cooper's presence in the Rangers first team began to decrease. Broadcaster Tam Cowan stated: "He (Souness) was bringing in guys like Mark Walters, exciting talent out on the wing from down south. But Davie, because he loved the game so much, just wanted to go somewhere where he could play first team football." Souness later admitted his mistake in allowing Cooper to leave for Motherwell, saying: "I regret the fact I didn't say no to him at that time. He went on to play brilliantly at the highest level for another three years." After 12 years at Ibrox, Cooper signed for Motherwell, then managed by former teammate Tommy McLean in August 1989 for a fee of £50,000. His debut for the club came at Rugby Park in a midweek Scottish League Cup tie against Kilmarnock on 15 August 1989. Motherwell won the match 4–1, with Cooper assisting in three of the four goals scored. He scored his first goal for the North Lanarkshire side the following month, in a 3–0 win against Dundee at Fir Park on 30 September 1989.

Cooper spent nearly five years with Motherwell, going on to play over 150 times for the Steelmen. Perhaps his most notable achievement during his Motherwell spell was contributing to the club winning its first major trophy in 39 years: The 1990–91 Scottish Cup against Dundee United, in which Motherwell won 4–3 after extra time in the final. The following day, Cooper and his teammates paraded the streets of Motherwell on an open top bus, with thousands of fans gathering to celebrate the club's success.

While with Motherwell, Cooper had been working in a coaching capacity with the reserve and youth sides. In December 1993 he returned to Clydebank as a player, but also to assist in coaching duties. In 1993–94 he played in a total of 20 games, including sixteen starts and four as a substitute. In 1994–95 he was almost an ever present in the side until the start of February, when he played his last first team match against Hearts in a Scottish Cup third round replay at Tynecastle on 7 February 1995.

Cooper had scored his last goal in a Challenge Cup semi final against Airdrie earlier that season, and his last appearance in a Clydebank jersey was in a reserve fixture at New Kilbowie on 21 February 1995 against Hamilton Academical. He won another three caps that season, versus Wales, Switzerland and England. His full international debut for Scotland came on 12 September 1979, in a 1–1 draw with Peru at Hampden Park. Cooper played for the national team again the following month in a 1–1 draw at home to Austria in the Euro 1980 qualifiers, but after that he wasn't capped again for over four years. Cooper returned to the national team on 28 February 1984, scoring against Wales in a 2–1 British Home Championship win, and he was on the scoresheet for Scotland again later in the year in a 6–1 friendly win over Yugoslavia. Cooper became a regular in the Scotland team and prior to the 1986 World Cup, playing in 11 consecutive games. A key match was the last qualification group match, against Wales in September 1985, in which Scotland needed at least a draw to keep their qualification hopes alive. Cooper began the match on the bench and Scotland struggled early on, as Mark Hughes scored for Wales in the 13th minute and goalkeeper Jim Leighton struggled with vision after losing a contact lens. Scotland manager Jock Stein replaced Gordon Strachan with Cooper in the 61st minute. With nine minutes remaining, Scotland were awarded a penalty kick that Cooper scored. As the game ended in a 1–1 draw, the Scotland team and around 12,000 travelling fans celebrated their survival in the competition. The achievement was completely overshadowed by the collapse and death of Jock Stein, who fell ill at the final whistle and died 30 minutes later. Cooper also scored in a 2–0 win against Australia in the qualification play off, and made two appearances in the finals in Mexico. Cooper scored his final two goals (from six in total) for Scotland on 12 November 1986 in a 3–0 home win against Luxembourg in a Euro 88 qualifier. He was capped twice for Scotland as a Motherwell player, and the last of his 22 caps was earned on 16 May 1990 in a friendly against Egypt at Pittodrie. An injury precluded him from being selected for the Scotland squad for the 1990 FIFA World Cup finals. Cooper's final Scotland cap was auctioned by his friend John Semple in 2014. It was displayed at the Ideal Home Show in Glasgow's SECC before an auction at McTear's Auctioneers with an estimated value of around £8,000.

Cooper has been regarded by many as one of the greatest players in Scottish football history. Former teammate Mark Walters said in an interview on Cooper: "He could just glide past players, drop a shoulder and go. He used to manipulate the ball. Watching him made me a better player". Cooper was particularly gifted on his left foot, allowing him to deliver precise crosses and set pieces. Discussing Cooper's left footed ability, former Scotland manager Andy Roxburgh said: "He could have played a violin with it. He didn't need a right foot. He was so perfectly balanced, so technically gifted on his left, that he could do anything. There were no limitations. He could beat people any way; right, left, double back and beat them again".

Cooper began dating Christine McMeekin in summer 1975 after meeting at an ice rink. They married in spring 1980 at Coatdyke Congregational Church in the town of Airdrie and had one daughter, Nicola. At the time of Cooper's death, the couple had been separated for several years. One particularly close friend was Ally McCoist, who said in newspaper tribute to Cooper: ″I still regard myself as being blessed to have gained the chance to live and work and share football memories with Davie, whether at Ibrox or when we were in Scotland squads or just chewing the fat about the game we loved.″ McCoist and Derek Johnstone visited Cooper in hospital shortly before his death. Medical staff at the ground and series director Ian Hamilton attempted to resuscitate Cooper at the scene before an ambulance crew arrived. He was taken to Monklands General Hospital, where a CT Scan confirmed a subarachnoid haemorrhage. Cooper was transferred to the Institute for Neurological Sciences at Glasgow's Southern General Hospital, where consultant neurosurgeon Professor Garth Cruickshank took charge of the case. In the early hours of the following morning on 23 March 1995, Cooper's life support machine was turned off and he died at the age of 39. His funeral took place at Hillhouse Parish Church, Hamilton, on 27 March 1995, and he was buried in the town's Bent Cemetery.

The news of Cooper's death was met with widespread sadness from across the country and the footballing world, much of which is still felt today. Supporters of Clydebank, Rangers and Motherwell left tributes outside their respective grounds. Subsequently, a seven a side tournament for schoolchildren, The Davie Cooper Soccer Sevens, was named in his honour in 1995; it takes place annually in his hometown of Hamilton. The Davie Cooper Scottish Aneurysm Study Group was founded as part of Graham Teasdale’s research into the familial risk of Subarachnoid Haemorrhage (SAH) which included a survey of over 8500 relatives of patients with a SAH. The survey has been cited by numerous medical researchers in the study of intracranial aneurysms.

Cooper is remembered as one of the most significant players in the histories of Clydebank, Rangers and Motherwell football clubs. He was inducted into the Rangers Hall of Fame in 2000, Clydebank's in 2008 and Motherwell's in 2020. Dutch international Ruud Gullit played against Cooper in a friendly match for Feyenoord against Rangers, after which he called Cooper one of the greatest players he had ever seen. Gullit later named Cooper in his greatest XI in football magazine Four Four Two. 25 years after his sudden death, Gullit commented: "So, it's 25 years ago already, and we have to celebrate him. Davie Cooper forever." Ex Rangers forward, David Templeton, was named after Cooper by his father, ex pro Henry Templeton. David Templeton's full name is David Cooper Templeton. Ibrox features a matchday hospitality suite named Club Cooper, where various photographs of Cooper are displayed on the walls. After Cooper's death, Motherwell renamed Fir Park's North Stand in his honour. The 2005 Scottish League Cup Final between Rangers and Motherwell paid tribute to Cooper's memory. Ticket stubs had an image of him printed on them, and a percentage of the programme sales went towards establishing a centre for special needs children. In 1999, four years after Cooper's death, a statue of the player was erected in his honour at the Hamilton Palace Sports and Recreation Grounds. The bronze statue was created by artist Kenny Mackay and erected by South Lanarkshire Council. Former team mate Ally McCoist and Rangers ambassador Mark Hateley laid a wreath at the statue in March 2020, 25 years after Cooper's death in memory of the player.