Born in Barnsley, Yorkshire, Vest had coaching experience at Rugby Town and Rochdale United in England.
As well as being a shrewd and passionate coach, Vest was a skilled and hard-working midfielder. He produced teams that played attractive football with a finely honed competitive edge.
After consolidating their place in the national league in 1971 and 1972, Gisborne City challenged for a top-three place in 1973 and finished fourth, just a point shy of the second- and third-placed teams.
Vest coached Christchurch team New Brighton to third place in 1974 and then moved overseas to greater success in Australia and South-East Asia.
Former Gisborne City player Les Todd recalls Vest as the man who lifted Gisborne City’s performance and profile in the early 70s.
“It was his all-round ability to get a team playing winning football that made the difference,” said Todd, who was a midfielder and central defender during Vest’s time in charge.
“We didn’t do great, because we still lacked depth in players, but he made a hell of a difference to those he had.”
Vest also had players who went on to become coaches themselves. Todd coached Napier City Rovers and Gisborne Thistle, and was assistant to Kevin Fallon at Gisborne City.
Centrebacks Fallon and Ken Dugdale went on to be New Zealand team coaches. Fullback Maurice Tillotson played for New Zealand and was New Zealand player of the year during his time under Vest in Gisborne, then became player-coach of Lower Hutt club Stop Out and coach of the Manurewa team who won the national league in 1983 and beat Gisborne in the Chatham Cup final in 1984.
In his home page, Cerebral Soccer, Tillotson describes the effect of Vest’s arrival in Gisborne in 1971: “Alan was just the tonic we needed in order to get our season going. His bubbly outgoing personality was infectious and, combined with an in-depth knowledge of the game, he was able to pick things up for us, both on and off the pitch.”
Other squad members during Vest’s time in Gisborne included Len Cudd, Jimmy McMillan, George Flecknor, Ian Sim, Iain Gillies, Dave Carrick, Eddie Simpson, Danny Birnie, Phil Balcombe, Stephen Grout, Malcolm Knox, John Warrington, Mick Locker, Stephen Wright, Bob Dunn, Colin Milne, Fin MacDonald, Jim Nicholls, John Whitley and Terry Parkin.
Vest played 17 A-international games for New Zealand, scoring six goals. At 33, he went into the side in 1972 as captain and scored on debut against New Caledonia.
Vest moved to Australia, where he was director of coaching at the Football Federation of Western Australia. He coached the state side to a 2-1 victory over touring Scottish side Glasgow Rangers.
Perhaps his greatest success in football was as coach of Malaysian team Sarawak FA, from 1992-1998.
In its tribute, the Sarawak Tribune said the years under Vest were widely regarded as the team’s “golden era”.
“Under his leadership, Sarawak became one of the most feared sides in Malaysian football, combining discipline, fitness and a fierce sense of state pride,” the paper said.
“Vest guided Sarawak to the 1992 Malaysia FA Cup, the 1997 Premier League title and the 1998 Charity Shield, achievements that remain among the proudest moments in the state’s sporting history.”
Vest joined Perth Glory in 2001 and was Mich d’Avray’s assistant as the club secured two NSL (National Soccer League) championships and two premierships over the next three years. Vest took temporary charge of the side for the final six games of the 2005-06 campaign following the departure of head coach Steve McMahon.
He lived his last years in Perth and continued to be a well-respected figure in football circles in this part of the world.
