Brett Cooper (footballer)

Brett Cooper (born 11 August 1959) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Collingwood in the Victorian Football League (VFL).

Brett Cooper
Personal information
Full name Brett Cooper
Date of birth (1959-08-11) 11 August 1959
Original team(s) Preston[1]
Height 180 cm (5 ft 11 in)
Weight 89 kg (196 lb)
Position(s) Forward
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
1983 Collingwood 1 (0)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1983.
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Cooper established himself at Preston in the Victorian Football Association (VFA) in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and he won Preston's best and fairest award in 1981.[2] He joined Collingwood in 1983, although he would occasionally miss games due to his army commitments.[3] Collingwood's secretary, John Birt, described Cooper as a "mini Rene Kink".[4] After appearing in three reserves fixtures, Cooper played in Collingwood's round 12 win over Melbourne at VFL Park;[5] it was the only VFL game of his career, and he had 10 disposals and kicked a behind.[5]

During this time, Cooper struggled with heroin addiction. He first became addicted in 1979 before getting clean, but he became addicted again in late 1983. In 1984, he was sentenced to one year in prison for burglaries committed to support his habit. He got clean again while in prison, and returned to play VFA football. He played with Preston in 1986,[2] was cleared to Box Hill at the start of 1987,[6] and was cleared to Brunswick in July 1988.[7]

References
  1. Holmesby, Russell; Main, Jim (2007). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers. BAS Publishing. ISBN 978-1-920910-78-5.
  2. Hugo Kelly (21 June 1986). "Cooper determined to win the battle over drug addiction". The Age. Melbourne, VIC.
  3. The Age, "Foley back for the Two Blues", 11 July 1980, p. 22
  4. The Age, "Woods pick 2 first gamers", 13 June 1983, p. 26
  5. AFL Tables: Brett Cooper
  6. Sam Prenesti (7 May 1987). "Cooper clear, but Vernon out one week". The Age. Melbourne, VIC. p. 30.
  7. Linda Pearce (9 July 1988). "Cooper for Brunswick". The Sun News-Pictorial. Melbourne, VIC. p. 86.
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