[2] At some point in the early 1890s, the 20-year-old Cochran arrived in Barcelona for work reasons, like many other Britons who moved to the Catalan capital.

[2] In 1892, Cochran met James Reeves, who was recruiting football enthusiasts to create a well-organized club, and he joined him, having been impressed by his entrepreneurial spirit.

Cochran's group decided to move and settle in the neighboring town of Sant Vicenç de Torelló in Osona, where they introduced football to the textile colony of Borgonyà built by the Scottish spinning company owned by the Coats brothers, originally from Paisley.

[2][6] The first match took place on 24 March 1895 and ended in an 8–3 away loss, and the result was attributed to the fact that Torelló played against the sun and against the wind, and that their five forwards had trouble getting through Barcelona's strong and robust defenders.

[11] At some point in the late 1890s, Cochran moved to Biscay in the Basque Country, presumably due to work reasons, living in Portugalete for a few years.

[2][13] Cochran thus participated in what is now regarded as one of the first rivalries in Spanish football, one that helped turn the sport into a mass phenomenon in Bilbao since their duels aroused great interest.

[13][14] On 19 January 1902, Cochran played in the first paid match held in Biscay, since the public was charged with a ticket price of 30 cents of a peseta; Bilbao FC lost 2–4.

Cochran became an Athletic player and remained there until the end of the 1903–04 season, playing only two matches for them,[2][3] including the 1903 Copa del Rey Final, in which he played alongside the likes of Alejandro de la Sota, fellow Briton Walter Evans, and club founders Juan Astorquia and Eduardo Montejo, the latter having also lived in Portugalete.

[2] Cochran was also part of the team that won the 1904 Copa del Rey,[5] which Athletic were awarded without playing a single match since their opponents failed to turn up.