17. Lee Cook

Lee Cook has begun a third spell at QPR joining on loan from Fulham for the season with a view to buying him in 2009.

Cook is no stranger to Loftus Road though. Growing up he used to go to games with his family and is a massive Rangers fan. He held talks with Gerry Francis and Iain Dowie over a move to Loftus Road back in 1999 but instead he was charmed by Watford scout Mel Johnson and assistant manager Kenny Jackett and joined the Hornets instead. Ironically it was Johnson and Jackett who played a big part in bringing him to QPR a few years later.

Cook found first team opportunities limited at Vicarage Road and joined QPR on loan in December 2001. Cook came to the club after the team had been on a terrible run and had lost to Vauxhall Motors and slipped away from the playoffs. His arrival gave Rangers some much needed balance on the left wing and his excellent performances helped get Rangers on a good run which ended with us getting to the playoff final.

His debut against Brentford saw him win admiration from fans as he set up Marc Bircham's goal and his performances got better and better. His last game of his loan spell against Cheltenham saw him at his best. he tore the opposition apart with great dribbling and pace. he set up two goals that night and scored one himself in a 4-1.

Cook played 13 times for Rangers in the 2002/03 season scoring one goal and fans pleaded with the club to go out and buy the left winger. Rangers fan Bill Power stepped in to try and help but Watford were not keen to sell. Power then stayed in touch with the club and two years on has invested money into the club and is now club chairmen.

Cook soon got into the Watford first team and played in the FA Cup semi final just weeks after leaving Rangers. He was back in a hooped shirt in May but only as a fan. Cook sat with 30,000 other fans cheering the team on in the playoff final.

Cook made a big impression in the first division getting a regular place in the Watford team and showing what a good player he can be. By Christmas though he was in and out of the team and a move to QPR seemed inevitable. He ended the season well but despite a good offer from Watford he followed his heart and returned to Loftus Road.

He made his second debut for Rangers as a substitute against his old club Watford. It wasn’t a happy one though as a poor performance by the team saw us beaten 3-0.

Cook took a while to show his best form as he looked to recover from an injury picked up in pre season. He was soon showing what he was made of though with the first goal in a great comeback against Leicester City.

Cook soon became an exciting member of the team with his purposeful runs down the left and his crossing although sometimes erratic would usually create a few chances every game. He won the young player of the month award four times during the 2004/05 season on this web site as well as the young player of the year award.

Lee Cook will perhaps look back at the 2005/06 season as a turning point in his career where he turned his potential into consistent performances.

It didn't start too well for Cook who picked up a knock in the first game at Hull and missed the rest of August but his return in September saw him produce some excellent performances. Cook's corners and free kicks were a constant source of goals and chances. He created a goal for Shittu at Southampton before scoring one himself with a curling free kick against Luton.

His performances though were very inconsistent with Cook rarely playing two halves the same and he seemed to be allergic to playing well when attacking the Loft.

He was a constant form of frustration for the QPR fans, one minute he could show his ability with a mazy run or a pin point set piece to create a goal and another he'd shrug his shoulders and disappear from games leaving most people to forget he was playing.

Midway through the season some fans began to turn against him and a pathetic performance at Blackburn looked to signal trouble for Cook and despite an improvement in performances in the next few games he looked a shadow of the player he can be with no one really knowing how to get the best out of him.

This all changed though with the change in manager as Cook seemed to be the one player who flourished instantly under Gary Waddock and got better and better with every performance. Gone was the frightened winger bottling out of challenges, here was a winger willing to take players on and make things happen every time he got on the ball.

The last few months of the season Cook was a joy to watch, he created several goals and scored one cracking solo effort at Norwich. Cook now looked a quicker player and seemed to have the shackles taken off producing performances of flair and skill, which got fans off their seats. The improvement saw him win this web sites 2005/06 Most Improved player award.

During a pretty dismal run in to the end of the season the performances of Lee Cook were perhaps the one bright spark to give hope for the future.

Cook started the 2006/07 season in excellent form despite being in a side that looked low in confidence from the beginning. He was the first name on the team sheet every week and his skills and crossing ability on the left was proving more than a few headaches for opposition full backs. As the team won just one of the first nine league games the form of Cook was the only ray of hope at times.

His first goal of the season came in the League cup win over Northampton when his deflected shot arrowed into the bottom corner of the net. His assist rate was still excellent though and he had a hand in virtually every goal we scored early on in the season as well as creating some great chances for the forwards which were not taken.

As results improved after the change of manager so did Cook's performances as the chances he was creating began to be converted. Perhaps his best performance of the season came in the home game against Crystal Palace. Rangers were without a win in five games going into the game but we were playing well following on from a 3-3 draw at West Brom.

Cook put in a scintillating performance on the left wing. He tore his full back apart in the first half cutting inside and outside and delivering some inch perfect crosses. Cook roamed all across the pitch but was at his most deadly on the left where Palace just couldn't live with him. Rangers still managed to fall a goal behind at the break but in the second half Cook got even better.

His corner was converted by Lomas to draw us level before a sublime piece of skill saw us take the lead. Cook got the ball on the edge of the box and with a turn and a drag back he left his full back on his backside who had no choice but to pull Cook down for a penalty. It was an outrageous piece of skill and was typical of what Cook produced all season. Rangers went on to win the game 4-2 and Cook was gaining plaudits from everyone who watched him play with several Premiership clubs showing an interest in him as well.

An injury in our next home game against Sunderland meant Cook was missing for the next few games and unsurprisingly Rangers struggled to score a goal let alone win a game in that period.

His return to the side saw him continue where he left off with some superb performances on the left as he made mugs of several full backs and had the fans up on their feet every time he got the ball and ran down the left.

Scoring goals though has never been Cook's strong point and by the end of January he had managed just two, the one against Northampton and an excellent curling effort against Birmingham on Boxing Day. It was a little surprisingly then to see Cook switched from the left wing to play up front for the game against Burnley. Cook adapted quickly though and opened the scoring with a good run and shot from outside the box, Cook didn't look overly comfortable in his new position but he scored again a few weeks later in the draw with Plymouth for his fourth and last goal of the season.

The team began to improve when Cook was moved back to the left wing and we managed to pick up enough points to secure Championship safety and Cook had played a massive role in achieving that.

His performances from day one of the season have consisted of immense effort, skill and creativity. He had a hand in so many goals with his crosses, free kicks, corners and at times outrageous skill coming in from the left wing.

Cook is a player born to wear the blue and white hoops, a player with skills that fans will pay to see and he deserves all the accolades given to him for the season he has had.

Cook left QPR in the summer of 2007 to join Fulham with the club desperate for money to stay in business. Cook decided to help out his club by giving back his £250,000 signing on fee to the club which helped us stay in business. That move made Cook a hero in many fans eyes and the call for him to return has been loud since we got new owners in September.

A loan move for Cook in September fell down and again in March when he even trained with QPR but he finally got his wish to come back to QPR after a injury ravaged season at Fulham where he didn't make a single first team appearance.