*Indicates unconfirmed information. Figures in brackets after English team names indicate all appearances made and goals scored in competitive matches for Football League clubs from 1888 onwards. For Scottish League clubs the figures show details of all competitive appearances and goals scored from 1946/47 onwards.
Grant Cooper
Appearances: 14 Goals: 0
Date / Year of birth: 16th September 1978
Position: Centre-back
Season of first appearance: 2009/10
Season of last appearance: 2009/10
Also played for: Wimbledon (0), Enfield, Chesham United, Bishop's Stortford, Dagenham & Redbridge, Dublin City (Ireland), Hemel Hempstead Town, Hornchurch, King's Lynn, Maidenhead United, Chelmsford City, Canvey Island, Maldon & Tiptree, Grays Athletic and Heybridge Swifts
London-born defender who started his career with Wimbledon where he spent a season as a professional without playing for the first team before joining Enfield in the summer of 1997.
Grant went on to spend five seasons with the Isthmian League Premier Division club and made a total of 131 league appearances (eight as sub). He scored nine league goals for Enfield and played alongside future Margate players Darren Annon and Lee Protheroe during his time with the club.
In May 2002 Grant signed for Chesham and scored six times in 32 Isthmian League Premier Division outings during 2002/03. All of his goals came from the penalty spot.
He moved on to Bishop's Stortford in June 2003 and Grant made 36 Premier Division appearances for them during the 2003/04 campaign, scoring four times.
In the summer of 2004 he featured in several friendlies for Conference outfit Dagenham & Redbridge and Grant was briefly signed by the Daggers before opting to join Irish club Dublin City in August 2004.
He made his debut for Dublin in a 2-1 defeat at Drogheda and Grant played alongside ex-England international Carlton Palmer in the heart of the Dublin defence.
Having left Dublin in November 2004 Grant returned to England and at the end of January 2005 he joined for Hemel Hempstead where he spent a few weeks before moving on to Hornchurch in March 2005.
In June 2005 Grant signed for King's Lynn who were managed by former Margate boss Tommy Taylor and he stayed with the club until March 2007 when he linked up with Maidenhead.
Grant went on to play a pivotal role as Maidenhead won promotion from the Southern League Premier Division to the Conference South during the 2007/08 season and he scored three times in 54 appearances before being loaned to Bishop's Stortford - his second spell there - in December 2008.
Grant's move became permanent in January 2009 and he featured in 15 Conference South games for the Bishops before the end of the 2008/09 campaign. He also played ten times in the league at the start of 2009/10 before being released in December 2009.
Grant then joined Chelmsford where he made one Conference South appearance and played twice in cup ties (once as sub) early in 2010. He was released in February 2010.
At the start of March 2010 Grant signed for Margate and made his debut at centre-back in a 3-0 defeat against Tonbridge in an Isthmian League Premier Division match played at Hartsdown Park on 2.3.10. He was a regular in the side after that and only missed two of Margate's last 15 matches of the 2009/10 season.
In its report on a 2-1 win at Carshalton on 30.3.10 the Isle of Thanet Gazette described Grant as being "a steady player who's getting better all the time" and the Thanet Times felt he was Margate's best player in a 1-1 home draw with Bognor Regis on 3.4.10. The paper said Grant "looked the part" and "had his best game for Margate" whilst adding that he played like "an old-school defender, did the ugly stuff well, let Bognor know he was about, and he must have come out on top in just about every little tussle he had".
Grant was then described as a "footballing centre-half" in the Thanet Times' report on a 2-1 defeat at Tooting & Mitcham on 17.4.10 and the paper added "they're rare in this league". He played once more - in a 1-0 win over visitors Hastings on 24.4.10 - as Margate escaped relegation despite finishing in the drop zone. At the end of the season Grant left the club having made a total of 14 appearances and part of the reason for his departure was the fact that he was finding travelling to Margate difficult.
At the start of the 2010/11 campaign Grant was dual-registered with his old club Chelmsford of the Conference South and Canvey Island of the Isthmian League Premier Division but at the beginning of October 2010 he joined Maldon & Tiptree.
Grant made 16 Division 1 North appearances (one as sub) for the Essex club and scored twice before returning to Maidenhead in March 2011.
He spent the last few weeks of 2010/11 with the Magpies but in June 2011 Grant left Maidenhead to sign for Grays.
He went on to make 29 Division 1 North appearances (one as sub) without scoring for Grays during the 2011/12 season and Grant also started 2012/13 there, making two league appearances, before moving on to Heybridge, also of Division 1 North, in February 2013.
He scored twice from 11 league outings (one as sub) for Heybridge before the end of the 2012/13 campaign.
During his time with Margate Grant worked as an accountant.
|
SEASON (CLUB) |
FULL (MAX) |
SUB |
GLS |
FAC |
FAT |
ILC |
KSC |
||
|
2009/10 (MFC) |
14 (51) |
0 |
0 |
ISTHMIAN LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION (19TH OF 22) |
1QR |
1QR |
3R |
QF |
|
Margate finished in
relegation position but were reprieved and remained in the Isthmian League
Premier Division. | |||||||||