Cooper was born in New Zealand and only arrived in Australia as a 15-year-old, but quickly confirmed his status as one of his adopted country's best midfield talents.

Cooper's ascension through Australian rugby has been as impressive as it has been rapid. After making his Super 14 debut for the Reds as a teenager, the midfielder went on to earn his first Australia cap against Italy aged 20 in 2008 - memorably scoring a try to spare the Wallabies' blushes against the Azzurri.

The following year saw Cooper help steer the Reds through every match of the Super 14 campaign, and he also added four more Wallabies appearances to his tally on Australian soil. Equally able at No.10 or No.12, the young gun also featured on the end of year tour of Europe - starting all four games. Although the Wallabies came up considerably short in their bid for a Grand Slam tour, Cooper's form was heralded as one of the postivies from the trip.

However his year was soured on his return to Australia when he was charged by police over an alleged burglary of a local residence. He subsequently cleared to play in the 2010 Super 14 by the Australian Rugby Union but faces a court date in July. He has a history of indiscipline having been reprimanded for "engaging in a food fight" at the Wallabies team hotel in Canberra in June 2009 and fined A$10,000 for bringing the game into disrepute in August the same year following a dispute with a Brisbane taxi driver.

Cooper bounced back from the controversy with an outstanding series of performances on his way to being named Australia's Super 14 Player of the Year. The Reds narrowly missed out on the semi-finals but Cooper scored a record 171 points scored during the campaign and he also claimed the mark for the most points in a match with his two try, three conversion and five penalty 31-point effort against the Crusaders topping Elton Flatley's previous mark of 26.

His form was rewarded with the Australia No.10 shirt for the season-opener against Fiji and the two-Test series with England - and he went on to score two tries in his side's Cook Cup victory in Perth. He was back in court later in the year to be disqualified from driving after pleading guilty to a charge of driving while on a suspended license. He also faced a hearing relating to the previous year's alleged burglary but the charges were eventually dropped after a mediation process with the complainants and police.

There was more woe for Cooper later in the year when an ill-advised tip tackle on South Africa's Morne Steyn during their Tri-Nations clash in Brisbane led to a yellow card and a subsequent two-week ban. Amid massive speculation about a possible move to rugby league, Cooper returned to action against South Africa and subsequently helped the Wallabies to their first win on the high veldt since 1963.

Upon his return to Australia he signed a one-year extension with the ARU through to the World Cup. He maintained his strong run of form during the re-vamped Super Rugby competition in 2011 and shunned further interest from rugby league and overseas in signing a one-year contract extension with the ARU and Reds that will keep him in Brisbane until the end of 2012. Cooper was in fantastic form in the semi-finals of Super Rugby and was instrumental in the Reds win over the Blues. And his success did not stop there as he helped guide the Wallabies to Tri-Nations glory.

Cooper's impressive form showed no sign of abating and he was named in the Wallabies 30-man squad for the 2011 World Cup. However, once in the tournament, Cooper failed to find the level of form previously showcased for the Reds and during the Tri-Nations. With the New Zealand public on his back, Cooper struggled in their semi-final against the All Blacks nudging the kick-off straight into touch.

However, in the bronze final against Wales, Cooper showed early signs of being back to his mercurial best playing at a quick tempo and showcasing his range of skills. But midway through the first-half, he was struck down by a knee injury which brought an ubrupt end to his game. He subsequently underwent surgery to repair his anterior cruciate ligament and would miss the start of the Reds' defence of the Super Rugby title.