George Terence Cochrane (born 23 January 1953) is a Northern Irish former

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who played in midfield as a winger. Cochrane started out as a youngster with Derry City and had been rejected after a months trial with Everton, then managed by

Billy Bingham William Laurence Bingham (5 August 1931 – 9 June 2022) was a Northern Ireland international footballer and football manager. As a player, his first professional club was Glentoran, whom he played for between 1948 and 1950. Making the move ...

, for "not having the right build" to play in midfield. Cochrane returned to the Irish League to play for Linfield, and then

Coleraine Coleraine ( ; from ga, Cúil Rathain , 'nook of the ferns'Flanaghan, Deirdre & Laurence; ''Irish Place Names'', page 194. Gill & Macmillan, 2002. ) is a town and civil parish near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, Northern I ...

, thinking his dream of playing English football was over. At Coleraine, under the tutelage of former

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

boss,

Bertie Peacock John Robert 'Bertie' Peacock MBE (29 September 1928 – 22 July 2004) was a Northern Ireland international footballer and manager who played for Celtic. Playing career After starting his career with local side Coleraine F.C., Peacock moved on ...

, Cochrane developed into a fine winger and was capped by his country for the first time in October 1975 against

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. In October 1976 Cochrane moved to

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...

, then playing in Division Two. With Burnley he became a much sought-after player - his scintillating displays aiding Burnley in their survival from relegation.

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

later paid a club record fee of £233,333 for him in October 1978. This was also a record fee for a Northern Ireland player and his debut came in a 2–0 home win over

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...

on 14 October. After five years at Ayresome Park and a brief spell playing in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

with

Eastern AA Eastern Athletic Association Football Team Limited, also known as Eastern Sports Club (), is a Hong Kong professional sports club whose football section competes in the Hong Kong Premier League, the top flight of Hong Kong football. The f ...

, Cochrane moved to Gillingham in October 1983. He was named as the Kent side's Player of the Season for 1984–85. Never really established in the international team, indeed 13 of his 26 caps came as a sub, he is remembered for his goal against

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

during the 1980 British Home Championship. The goal came nine minutes after he had come on as a sub, and just sixty seconds after the English had scored, to earn Northern Ireland a crucial 1–1 draw as they went on to win the Championships for the first time in 66 years. A hamstring injury picked up in a warm-up match against

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

ruled Cochrane out of the 1982 World Cup squad after playing in all but two of the qualifiers. He was capped just twice more after that World Cup series, acting as

Martin O'Neill Martin Hugh Michael O'Neill, (born 1 March 1952) is a Northern Irish professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. Starting his career in Northern Ireland, O'Neill moved to England where he spent most of his playi ...

's deputy in a British Championship game against

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

in December 1983, as Northern Ireland won the trophy; and as substitute for Gerry Armstrong in a World Cup qualifier against

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

in May 1984. He failed to make the 1986 World Cup squad before short spells with

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, eas ...

(November 1986) and

Hartlepool United Hartlepool United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Hartlepool, County Durham, England. The team competes in EFL League Two, League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. They were founded i ...

(January 1987). Later Cochrane moved into non-league football with Billingham Synthonia, coached the Saudi Arabian Military team, and had a spell as player-manager of the ill-fated

South Bank The South Bank is an entertainment and commercial district in central London, next to the River Thames opposite the City of Westminster. It forms a narrow strip of riverside land within the London Borough of Lambeth (where it adjoins Alber ...

. Cochrane lived in the

area for a number of years, working as a media pundit and youth coach. In January 2008 he was appointed manager at Glenavon who play in the Irish Premier League, though he left the club by mutual consent the following June.BBC
"Cochrane loses Glenavon position"
11 June 2008. Retrieved on 6 May 2013. In August 2009 he took over as coach of Hartlepool Ladies Football Club. In 2014 Cochrane released an autobiography, ''See You At The Far Post''.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cochrane, Terry 1953 births Living people Association footballers from Northern Ireland Northern Ireland international footballers Expatriate sportspeople from Northern Ireland in Hong Kong Derry City F.C. players Linfield F.C. players Coleraine F.C. players Burnley F.C. players Middlesbrough F.C. players Eastern Sports Club footballers Gillingham F.C. players Dallas Sidekicks (original MISL) players Millwall F.C. players Hartlepool United F.C. players Billingham Synthonia F.C. players Marske United F.C. players Billingham Town F.C. players South Bank F.C. players Ferryhill Athletic F.C. players Expatriate footballers in Hong Kong Association football wingers Expatriate sportspeople from Northern Ireland in the United States