Richard Cooper insists he has no qualms about swapping Premiership possibilities for life in Football League's basement.

As reported yesterday, Terry Dolan has snapped up the 21-year-old wing-back permanently after an impressive loan spell at Bootham Crescent.

His signing is major coup for City, with Nottingham Forest willing to offer Cooper a one-year extension to his current City Ground deal.

However, while Forest, on the fringes of the First Division play-offs, could offer the former England Under-18 international the prospect of perhaps plying his trade in the Premiership Cooper has no doubts he has made the right decision.

"I'm pleased it has all been sorted out," he told the Evening Press. "I've been enjoying playing here and that was the reason I came here in the first-place - to get first team experience.

"I've been at Forest since I was nine and it was a big decision. But it didn't take me long to make up my mind.

"I realise if you want to get noticed and get yourself on the ladder then you have got to be playing.

"Forest would probably have offered me a year at the most but I just want to play first-team football and this is the best chance I've got."

Cooper, 21, revealed Terry Dolan had played a vital role in his decision and he was desperate to repay the faith shown in him by the City manager.

"He has given me the chance and he has been brilliant to me to be fair," he said.

"He has been sound about everything. He told me to talk it over with my mum and dad and I owe him and the chairman a lot."

With his future settled, Cooper admits he is delighted he can now concentrate on his football as City's season enters its most crucial phase.

And while a point at Torquay tomorrow would be enough to secure City's League status, Cooper insists City are planning to leave nothing to chance.

"You try not to think about relegation. At the end of the day if you start thinking negative it kicks in," he reasoned.

"We need to get these three games out of the way and if we play as we have been doing we have got a great chance.

"Tomorrow is a big game and we want to win it and we want to try and stay undefeated until the end of the season."

And while confident City's survival is all but assured, Cooper is also quietly confident of an improved Minstermen campaign next season.

"I hope we are up there challenging next year," he said.

"The players that have come in, not just me, have done well and the team is improving. Alan Fettis has been playing well in goal, the defence has looked very solid and Lee Nogan has been banging in the goals.

"Hopefully, next year we will be pushing but we will just have to see what happens."

* Russ Howarth and England's hopes of qualifying for this summer's European Under-18 Championships were ended in Poland yesterday.

England Under-18s could only manage a 0-0 draw with their Polish counterparts in Gdansk, where City goalkeeper Howarth had to be satisfied with a place on the bench.

The result means Poland win the tie 1-0 on aggregate and qualify for the finals in Finland following their first leg victory at White Hart Lane last month.

Updated: 12:11 Friday, April 27, 2001