TRIBUTES have poured in for Sevenoaks Amateur Boxing Club's legendary trainer, Alby Pallent MBE, whose funeral was held last week at Kent and Sussex Crematorium.

The charismatic boxer dedicated his life to helping others and made a lasting impression on all of the boys he coached, so much so that a huge number turned out to pay their respect at both the funeral and the wake, which was held at Sevenoaks ABC's gym on the Gaza Estate, near Hildenborough.

Alby, who would have turned 76 next month, was awarded an MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours List for 'services to sport and for voluntary service to the community in Tonbridge' and he was the inaugural winner of the Courier Media Group's Sports Editors Award for Outstanding Achievement earlier this year.

"What can I say," said Sevenoaks Amateur Boxing Club's Paul Lynch, who became very close to Pallent in the last five years. "He was a great inspiration for everyone at the club and he was someone all the kids loved. He was a wonderful man who put Sevenoaks on the boxing map so to speak. As a testimony to Alby's success a lot of people came to his funeral and they asked whether we could have the wake at the gym as that's where he spent his life."

Pallent, whose life story is so interesting that it was in the process of being made into a biography by friend and author Peter Evans shortly before Alby's death, grew up in south London, which is where he made his name as a boxing trainer, before moving to settle in Hildenborough.

One of his incumbents at South Norwood Boxing Club, Kenny Labretta, remembers fondly how Pallent successfully trained local children from the area onto bigger, better things.

"That was his golden period," explained Labretta, who put Pallent forward for an MBE last year. "There is no doubt in my mind whatsoever that Alby was the best boxing trainer in the country at that time.

"He trained in a tiny gym, all the boys came from a very small area, yet he produced a dozen champions, he really was the best and he knew himself that he was.

"I have known him all my life, he's a wonderful bloke and his family have lost someone very special. Alby had a lot of support from his wife, Edna, and I speak on behalf of everyone when I say he will be sadly missed."

Despite his ability to train youngsters up to a very high standard, something for which Pallent will be remembered and no doubt one of the fundamental reasons he was awarded his MBE was that he treated every boy in the gym as equals.

Just as important to Alby was keeping children off the streets, teaching them how to conduct themselves both in and out of the ring and all of this was done on a voluntary basis.

His ability to command respect continued right up until the day he died as when he visited Sevenoaks Amateur Boxing Club shortly after receiving his MBE at Buckingham Palace every boy in the gym wanted to have their photo taken with him.

It is little wonder this boxing legend will be remembered so fondly by so many.

In honour of Alby, Sevenoaks Amateur Boxing Club will be hosting a gym show on August 30 at 1pm. There will be a barbecue, raffle, cake stall and alcohol on sale.