Ipswich legend John Wark has never hidden his desire to have played for Rangers during his glittering career – and the former Scotland star admits that he wishes he’d got the chance to play for his boyhood heroes alongside Davie Cooper.
Cooper passed away 25 years ago today and Wark has been reminiscing about the Moody Blue, confessing he was “in awe” of the mercurial winger.
Wark and Coop were friends off the pitch and told how he was “always” telling Cooper about his dream to play for the Light Blues alongside such a “scary” talent.
“I am a Rangers fan and I was often in awe of Davie when I saw him play. He was something else,” Wark told the Daily Record.
“He never got enough games for Scotland. We had Gordon Strachan and John Robertson and often Davie had to settle for a place on the bench so I didn’t see the best of him as a Scotland team-mate.
But I knew exactly what he was like as his quality was the exact same in training.
“He had that natural ability. When you first saw him you’d say, ‘Bloody hell who is this guy?’
“Davie would glide past people, he could go past three in the blink of an eye. His talent was scary.
“I liked Davie off the park too. He was a typical Glasgow boy. I was always talking to him about Rangers telling him, ‘I wish I played for your team’.”
Cooper made 540 appearances for Rangers over 12 years, winning three titles, three Scottish Cups and a remarkable seven League Cups before moving to Motherwell in 1989.
Despite it being quarter of a century since his death, Cooper still holds a fond place in the memories of Rangers fans lucky enough to see him in action.