Neale Cooper

Neale James Cooper (24 November 1963 – 28 May 2018) was a Scottish football player and coach.

He played as a midfielder during the 1980s and 1990s, most prominently for the Aberdeen team managed by Alex Ferguson, and later played for Aston Villa, Rangers, Reading, Dunfermline Athletic and Ross County.

Cooper then became a coach, and worked as a manager in England with Hartlepool United (twice) and Gillingham, and in Scotland with Ross County and Peterhead.

Born in Darjeeling, India, Cooper attended Airyhall Primary School and Hazlehead Academy in Aberdeen and began his senior career with Aberdeen, the team he had supported as a boy.

A first-team regular from the beginning of the 1981–82 season, he starred in midfield for the Dons for five seasons in which he won two Premier Division championships, four Scottish Cups, one League Cup, the 1983 European Cup Winners' Cup and the European Super Cup under the management of Alex Ferguson.

Having initially moved into a flat in Aberdeen as a young player, Cooper was 'persuaded' by Ferguson to return to his mother's home to help ensure that Cooper was shielded from the obvious temptations arising from youthful independence.

Despite his success at club level and a prominent role in the national age-group teams including at the 1983 FIFA World Youth Championship, he never gained a full cap for Scotland, a fact which surprised many.

In the summer of 1986, he signed for Aston Villa.

Cooper made only twenty league appearances in the next two years, partly because of injuries.

In the 1988–89 season, he transferred to Rangers but injuries restricted him to only seventeen league appearances and he failed to make a single first team appearance in the 1990–91 season – instead, he was restricted to sixteen appearances in the reserves, the final one coming against Motherwell on 30 March 1991

In 1991, Cooper signed for Reading, where he linked up with his former Aberdeen teammate Mark McGhee.

Cooper made seven league appearances in a brief stint with Reading, before he moved to Dunfermline Athletic.

At Dunfermline he was able to play regularly, helping them win promotion to the Premier Division in 1995–96 (having lost to his former club Aberdeen in the play-off a year earlier).

In 1996, Cooper moved into management with Ross County.

He guided the Staggies through two successful promotion campaigns climbing from the fourth to the second tier, before stepping down after a run of only one win in eleven games.

After a break from the game, Cooper was appointed manager of Hartlepool United.

Pools had been promoted from the bottom tier of English football to Division Two for the third time in their history, but manager Mike Newell had been sacked.

He was a surprise choice of chairman Ken Hodcroft, but Cooper's strong Aberdeen links, with Pools owners IOR Ltd based in the Scottish city, helped his cause.

Hodcroft was impressed by Cooper from their first encounter.

Upon appointment, Cooper joked "I've come from Ross County, which is somewhere up near Iceland".

His first game in charge of Hartlepool was a memorable 4–3 opening day of the season win at Peterborough United – with four new signings all getting on the scoresheet, creating history in the process.

Cooper described it as "One of the most emotional games of football I've ever been involved in" after his new side came back from 3–1 down to win.

That momentum carried Hartlepool forward, coupled with Cooper's charisma and touchline passion.

New signing Marco Gabbiadini made an impact before he was forced to retire.

Another new striking recruit Paul Robinson scored a hat-trick in a Friday night 8–1 thumping of Grimsby Town at Victoria Park.

Cooper then drove back home to Aberdeen to be with his family after the game.

Cooper's touchline manner meant he was an instant hit with the Hartlepool crowd and that season he led the team to their highest-ever league finish – sixth in Division Two.

They also took over 10,000 fans to the Stadium of Light – the biggest away attendance at Sunderland's ground – for an FA Cup third round tie.

Hartlepool secured a play-off spot after a 1–1 draw at Swindon Town on the final day.

Both teams only needed a point to make the play-offs and Hartlepool took on Bristol City.

Hartlepool drew 1–1 at home, before losing 2–1 in the second-leg, conceding two late goals after Antony Sweeney had headed Hartlepool in front.

The next season, Hartlepool again finished sixth.

Cooper's side embarked on a 12-game unbeaten run at the turn of the year with Adam Boyd and Joel Porter irresistible up front.

But Pools won only 3 of 12 games, including a 4–6 home loss to Wrexham.

And after a home defeat by Walsall, Cooper was controversially removed from his post, with just one league game to go.

Hodcroft later said that the manager was struggling on a number of personal fronts with his family and children back in Aberdeen.

Cooper's assistant Martin Scott took temporary command and Cooper's players made the play-off final, losing 4–2 to Sheffield Wednesday after extra time.

Three weeks after leaving Hartlepool, he took over the reins at Gillingham.

Cooper resigned in November of that year after poor performances in the league and an FA Cup defeat to Northern Premier League side Burscough.

In October 2006, Cooper returned to Scottish football with Second Division Peterhead, as he took on the role of first team coach under the management of Steve Paterson.