The religious, born in Vila-real on January 14, 1936, dedicated his life to the service of God and his monastic community. Before embracing his religious vocation, Alayrach was a footballer for the 'groguet' team, a period recorded in the local football history.
The book 100 years of football in Vila-real, by Vicente Soro Nácher, includes his name among the players who were part of Villarreal CF in the fifties, a key period for the 'groguet' club. The publication mentions him alongside other footballers from those years.
His life path changed definitively in 1960 when he entered the Trappist monastery of San Isidro de Dueñas, in the province of Palencia. There, he began a religious career that lasted over six decades. He made his temporary monastic profession on January 6, 1963, and his solemn profession on August 15, 1966.
The monastic community remembers him as a man of deep piety, devoted to prayer and community life. They also highlight his sense of humor, his love for his brothers, and his willingness to perform various services within the monastery, such as in the refectory, pastry making, kitchen, farms, or assisting in the tailor's shop.
In recent years, arthritis caused him to lose mobility, and he had to retire to the infirmary due to heart and vascular disease. Nevertheless, his memory remains linked to a life of service, humility, and commitment to his community.
Vicente Ferrer Alayrach thus leaves a unique biography: that of a man from Vila-real who went from the football fields and the Villarreal CF jersey to a contemplative life in the Trappist monastery, where he remained until his death, leaving an indelible memory among those who knew him.
