The next 12 years would see him become a Rangers stalwart, playing 540 games and winning numerous trophies with the Ibrox club, including the Scottish Premier Division in 1977–78, 1986–87 and 1988–89.

He intended to retire as a player at the end of the 1995 season, however on 22 March 1995 he suffered a subarachnoid haemorrhage at Broadwood Stadium in Cumbernauld whilst filming Shoot, a youth coaching television programme.

Cooper was soon made captain of the Udston primary team and played as an inside forward (roughly equivalent to a modern-day deep-lying striker).

Initially, Cooper was dissatisfied with his new surroundings, especially due to St John's failure to organise a school football team until his third year.

[8] Bill and Rose MacKenzie, who were friends of Cooper's parents, decided to set up a new youth football team called Udston United.

His first International recognition came when he was selected to represent Scotland's Amateur League side and played against the youth squads of England, Northern Ireland and Wales.

[13] Rangers, Motherwell, Clyde and Clydebank, together with English sides Coventry City and Crystal Palace, all expressed an interest in signing Cooper.

[17] When describing Cooper's first spell with Clydebank, Fallon stated: "It definitely toughened him up, because these were the days where defenders were allowed to tackle really hard and you had to be a resilient character to keep charging down the wing in these circumstances.

[22] Clydebank achieved promotion that season to the Scottish First Division, with their final match being a 2–0 win against Forfar Athletic at New Kilbowie Park, in which Cooper scored the opening goal from a penalty.

[24] The team achieved some remarkable results, including a 6–0 away win to East Fife on 4 December 1976 and an unprecedented 8–1 home victory against Arbroath on 3 January 1977, during which Cooper scored another hat-trick for the side.

[24] A major opportunity was presented to Cooper when Clydebank were drawn against his boyhood club Rangers in the quarter-final of the Scottish League Cup in September 1976.

Rangers, under the management of Jock Wallace, had secured the Scottish treble the previous season and were looking for young, creative players to add to their ranks.

The Govan side initially offered Clydebank £50,000, the sum increasing numerous times, eventually reaching an agreement on £100,000 to secure Cooper as a Rangers player.

[31] Defensively, Rangers had depth and quality with players such as John Greig, Tom Forsyth, Colin Jackson and Sandy Jardine.

His first trophy with Rangers came on 18 March 1978 after defeating Celtic 2–1 in the 1978 Scottish League Cup Final at Hampden Park, with Cooper and Smith on the scoresheet.

[35] In the league, Rangers narrowly secured the title by two points over Aberdeen, following a 2–0 home victory against Motherwell on 29 April 1978 with goals from Smith and Jackson.

Broadcaster Tam Cowan stated: "He (Souness) was bringing in guys like Mark Walters, exciting talent out on the wing from down south.

[52] 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.

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.

[55] 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.

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.

[13][4] A winger, he became a notoriously difficult opponent due to his creative and elegant playing style, with strength and manipulation of the ball allowing him to ease past opposition players.

[63] Despite not being blessed with pace, his close ball control, strength and "dip of the shoulder" allowed him to create many assists and score goals throughout his career.

Cooper collapsed suddenly on the morning of 22 March 1995 at a training pitch adjacent to Broadwood Stadium in Cumbernauld during a recording session for an episode.

[70] Medical staff at the ground and series director Ian Hamilton attempted to resuscitate Cooper at the scene before an ambulance crew arrived.

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.

The (then) Scottish Football Association chief executive Jim Farry stated: "It is tragic that one with such skills and knowledge will no longer be able to impart them to young players.

"It was our intention to take football to the children of the country" said Jack Steedman, whose club had helped Cooper develop his own skills throughout the early 1970s.

[74] 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.

[87] 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.