Mitch Cooper

Mitch Steven Baggio Cooper (born 18 September 1994) is a Ni-Vanuatu soccer player who played for Hume City in the National Premier Leagues Victoria. Early life Cooper was born in Port Vila, Vanuatu, and lived there until age eight, attending the Port Vila International School. He then lived in New Zealand for five years before moving to Australia. Club career Gold Coast United Cooper was called up to the senior squad of A-League club Gold Coast United in February 2012, aged seventeen. With regular captain Michael Thwaite suspended, club owner Clive Palmer named Cooper captain for the match against Melbourne Heart as a sign of the club's commitment to promoting young players. Coach Miron Bleiberg subsequently described the move as a symbolic one, claiming that more experienced players would effectively lead the side on the field. Palmer suspended Bleiberg from his role as a result of those comments, replacing him with assistant coach Mike Mulvey for the Heart match. Gold Coast lost the game 1–0 to a late goal from Eli Babalj. Bleiberg quit the club days later, saying that Palmer's actions had hurt his dignity.