 He was set a points target which, if met, would bring a permanent deal.He met the target, but left the club to become manager of Forest Green Rovers; when he joined, on 9 May, they had just reached the 2016 National League play-off Final, although caretaker manager Scott Bartlett took charge for the final at Wembley with Cooper in an advisory role.On 23 November 2019 Mark Cooper was accused of provoking Leyton Orient Interim Head Coach Ross Embleton with a comment about the passing of Justin Edinburgh.