DAVIE COOPER will forever be held close to the hearts of Motherwell supporters.

 

For those lucky enough to have seen his talents at close quarters, they witnessed one of the most naturally gifted footballers ever to play the game.

Meanwhile those of a younger generation are still being educated on what Super Cooper meant to the Well and why his name has been emblazoned on the side of the club's north stand since the year of his passing in 1995.

For Keith Crane, the owner of Motherwell fans' forum Steelmen Online, he was lucky enough to have just been introduced to life as a Well fan in time to see Cooper dazzling supporters up and down the Fir Park flanks.

Speaking to SportTimes, Mr Crane, 31, tells of his first memories of Cooper in claret and amber.

He said: "Davie Cooper was my first football hero, definitely. I was only six years old when he signed but the thing that sticks out in my mind was one game he was warming up before the match.

"I remember him hitting the crossbar from about 20 yards out and some guy behind me shouted: 'Tenner says you can't do that again'.

"Cooper then went on to not only do it again but hit it three times in a row with the ball landing back at his feet every time.

"He took the guy's tenner, too!"

Reflecting on Cooper's legacy at Motherwell, Mr Crane added: "It wasn't until the cup final against Dundee United that I started to grasp what I was seeing.

"He is one of the few genuinely international and world class players to have come through our doors. Only James McFadden comes close to him in my lifetime.

"He is the epitome of team work, dedication, love for the game and approachability with supporters. I only wish more could have witnessed it."