Source: Northern_Echo
Cooper looks at steady progress for change in fortunes
MARK COOPER feels that he is slowly but surely winning the Darlington fans over.[LNB] Having made a number of long-term signings this month, Quakers' boss appears to be making steady progress in what he calls his rebuilding programme at The Northern Echo Arena.[LNB] But Cooper accepts it was always going to be a gradual process after such upheaval in the past couple of years.[LNB] It is seven months since the 42-year-old and his assistant Richard Dryden were appointed and while he is the first to admit there is still a fair way to go, Cooper feels progress is being made.[LNB] It was always going to be a gradual thing, says Cooper, in an interview with Darlington's matchday programme for the visit of Kettering.[LNB] When you've had a couple of really bad seasons as Darlington have had, it's like when someone has been seriously ill, they don't get better overnight, it takes a while.[LNB] You need a lot of rebuilding, a lot of love and comfort, and that's what it's going to take to get back on track. I think I'm slowly starting to win the fans over. I have a lot of banter with a bunch of lads behind the dug-out, they're good fun and are passionate about their club.[LNB] They were saying Aaron Brown was the worst left-back they'd ever seen and I told them, he'd be the best you've seen here for a while, and they love Browny now.[LNB] We're trying to play the game properly and I think they appreciate that, but at the end of the day winning games is the only sure way of winning people over.[LNB] Cooper says he and Dryden, who were also in tandem at Tamworth, work well as a duo.[LNB] They currently live in rented accommodation in Durham, close to the club's training base, and Cooper said: We've got a deal he does all the cooking, the cleaning and the shopping, and I just sit and watch the telly.[LNB] We've known each other for 20 years, we played together and roomed together at Exeter and Birmingham.[LNB] I've worked with him before and I know what he can do. He's a good foil for me, he's not afraid to disagree with me which is good, the last thing I need is a yes man, and the players like him as well.[LNB] We do have some heated discussions about team selections and tactics, but we usually agree that I'm right.[LNB] To read the full feature interview with Cooper, grab your copy of Quakers today.[LNB] Packed with club information, interviews, columns and features, as well as a detailed look at the opponents, Quakers is on sale in and around the Arena as well as from the club shop and ticket offices before and after the match, priced £2.50.[LNB]
