by himself on local supporters buses to Glasgow. He initially attended Beckford Street Primary in Hamilton before moving on to Udston Primary. 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). As an Udston Primary player, Cooper and his team won the Shinwell Cup youth tournament, beating Low Waters Primary 4–2 in the final at Douglas Park, the former home of Hamilton Academical. Following his primary education, Cooper attended St. John's Grammar School (now Hamilton Grammar School). 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. Bill and Rose MacKenzie, who were friends of Cooper's parents, decided to set up a new youth football team called Udston United. Cooper became one of the club's first players and, when not training or playing matches, helped promote the new club in the local community. Davie's older brother John, who was sixteen at the time, travelled to England for a trial period with Hull City. John found his spell there particularly difficult and struggled with homesickness and the tough-tackling defenders who were prevalent at the time. John returned to Scotland after two years and joined Larkhall Thistle. Cooper himself later moved on to Hamilton Avondale, a local youth team founded by brothers Alan and Stuart Noble, the owners of the Avondale Works. He began with the under–16 team, before progressing to the under–18 team. 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. During this time he was also working as an apprentice printer at the Noble's Office at Hamilton Avondale. Rangers, Motherwell, Clyde and Clydebank, together with English sides Coventry City and Crystal Palace, all expressed an interest in signing Cooper. Club career Clydebank (1974–77) Cooper's apprenticeship as a printer with the Noble family at their Almada Street offices came to an end when he reached 18. By that point, Cooper had almost no involvement in football activities outside of his work. Stuart Noble, one of the owners of Hamilton Avondale, contacted Clydebank director Jack Steedman, who quickly appeared in his car outside the Avondale offices with the hope of convincing Cooper to join the club. Steedman (who was well aware of Cooper's capabilities) signed