Brandon Cooper "over the moon" to make Championship bow

Swansea City’s Brandon Cooper declared himself “over the moon” after the young defender made his Championship debut in the 2-1 victory over Derby.

The 21-year-old came off the bench as Swansea City came from behind to beat the Rams and go fourth in the table.

The home side trailed to a Tom Lawrence header shortly after half-time, but quickfire goals from Morgan Whittaker and Connor Roberts gave the Swans all three points.

Cooper was introduced as a substitute late in the game to make his Championship bow after a spell out through injury.

“I’m over the moon for the team to get the win and keep the momentum going into the play-offs,” he said.

“But it’s nice to make my Championship debut after a couple of months being out injured, so thanks to the manager for putting me on and giving me that bit of sugar at the end.

“Everyone knows how ambitious I am to try and do the best I can. It’s nice to have got my Championship debut but I want to keep going now.”

Cooper enjoyed a fine loan spell with Newport County earlier in the campaign, making 25 appearances in all competitions under the tutelage of Michael Flynn.

He also won a call-up to the senior Wales squad for the first time back in March for games against Mexico and the Czech Republic.

The youngster was recalled from Rodney Parade in January but unfortunately suffered an ankle injury upon his return.

“I’ve had injuries in the past so I know that there’s always light at the end of the tunnel,” he said

“It was hard though because I’d gone from playing two games a week with Newport, and then getting inured abruptly stopped it.

“It was a hard one for me to take, especially the timing, coming back from the loan and then getting injured after two or three days.

“But the medical staff have been great with me, they have kept me positive and to get my Championship debut has topped it off.

“The loan spell was a great experience for me and exactly what I needed at the time. It has made me grow as a person, I played a fair few games in a short space of time in what was a good team too.

“It’s a big foundation for me going forward in my career.”