Cooper's plea to stay

[Huckerbys right foot]

Kevin Cooper has set his sights on earning a full-time contract with Norwich City following the completion of his successful loan spell at Carrow Road.

The 29-year-old Wolves midfielder returns to Molineux today after enjoying the Canaries' end of season celebrations – but he's hoping to be back in good time for next season's assault on the Premiership.

"To be perfectly honest I don't know whether I will play for Norwich again – but I'd certainly like to," said Cooper, who made 10 appearances for the club during the triumphant march to the Division One title.

"As you can imagine it has been pretty hectic over the last couple days so I haven't had a chance to discuss anything. Hopefully I'll get that opportunity before too long, but first I really need to speak to Dave Jones at Wolves to see how he views the situation.

"I'm a Wolves player and I've got two years left on my contract so I've got to find out where I stand. But a permanent move to Norwich really appeals to me, as does the chance of Premiership football. I've enjoyed being part of it over the last couple of months – and I'd love to be part of it again next season."

Cooper has gone from zero to hero since joining the Canaries on a temporary basis in the middle of March. Before his arrival at Carrow Road his season had been blighted by injury and he had made just two brief substitute appearances, one for Wolves and the other for Sunderland during a low-key loan spell.

Since pulling on a City shirt he has been involved in eight wins in 10 and has turned in a string of impressive displays on the right flank to help Nigel Worthington's team over the finishing line.

"I've enjoyed every minute of it," he said. "I can remember sitting in a lonely hotel room in Sunderland and thinking 'I can't wait for this season to end'. I was struggling for fitness, I wasn't playing and I just couldn't see any light at the end of the tunnel.

"Coming to Norwich was one of the best decisions of my career – things just couldn't have gone any better. From a personal point of view I've got the games I needed to get back to something like full fitness, while from a team point of view I've played a small part in a wonderful achievement. They are a real genuine set of lads and they deserve everything they've achieved this season. Something very special is happening at this club and it's been great to be involved."

Cooper has enjoyed all the celebrations - but has been a little more reserved than the rest of his colleagues.

"I'll remember those scenes for as long as I live, but it was a little bit difficult for me," he said. "My club Wolves have just got relegated and it would have been wrong if I'd got too carried away. I don't think my colleagues at Molineux would have been too impressed if they'd seen a picture of me with a huge smile on my face and a bottle of champagne in my hand. I just took a back seat and watched the lads enjoying themselves – it was their moment."

Worthington is keeping on open mind as far as signing Cooper on a permanent basis is concerned.

"It's a case of wait and see on that one," he said after the midfielder had completed his loan spell with a 30-minute run out from the bench at Crewe on Sunday. "A number of phone calls will be going in and we'll just have to see what develops."



KEEP HIM WORTHY!!