By the time he started school his parents had moved to McLean Street, Kinning Park, and his father was exhibiting symptoms of multiple sclerosis.
Described in the Glasgow Evening Times as "brilliant" by Thistle's manager David Meiklejohn, he was asked to sign professional forms and told he would make his senior debut the following day.
It was exactly seven weeks after his 18th birthday and he was fielded wearing the attacking number 8 shirt (inside-right) in front of a reported 60,000 fans in the Glasgow derby against Rangers at Ibrox Park.
The game finished in a 2–2 draw, and Wright played in 7 of Thistle's remaining 10 league matches plus a home Scottish Cup tie against Queen of the South.
He scored his first goal against Dundee in October 1949 but thereafter experienced his first prolonged absence as his father finally died from the effects of multiple sclerosis in December 1949, aged only 41.
Seeing he was no longer part of the first-team plans at Firhill, Glasgow rivals Clyde bid £8000 for his services - Partick rejected this offer before later accepting East Fife's £4000 payment for his transfer in May 1963.
He was made captain by manager Bonthrone and led the Fifers to a League Cup quarter-final, where they held that season's treble-winning Rangers 1–1 at Bayview before losing narrowly 2–0 at Ibrox in the second-leg.
The Shawfielders had fine attacking players such as Harry Hood, Joe Gilroy, Alex Bryce, Sammy Reid and Jim McLean, and Wright helped them finish 7th in the First Division on 40 points, a record haul for a promoted side.
[2] As St Mirren's only other full-time employee was the groundsman, Wright was also responsible for the day-to-day administration of the part-time club; from answering the telephone and selling tickets, to compiling the match programme and ordering the match-day pies.
St Mirren had flirted seriously with relegation throughout the early 1960s and eventually succumbed at the end of that 1966–67 season despite having 19-year-old Archie Gemmill in the side,[9] but Wright guided them to promotion back to the top flight at the first attempt.
To have averaged even a point-per-game in the remaining fixtures would have comfortably broken the record points total for a promoted team achieved by his Clyde side 3 years earlier and ended St Mirren's season as high as 5th position.
However, a sudden spate of injuries badly disrupted the small squad, leaving only 2 of the club's 16 players fit enough to play in every match to the end of the season.
Behind the scenes, however, a reserve side had been resurrected and Wright's signing policy introduced three future full Scotland internationals to the club in addition to four others who would go on to play in European competition after leaving St Mirren.
[14] Season 1970–71 began with six teenagers making appearances in the side, including Gordon McQueen, Iain Munro, Bobby McKean and Ally McLeod.
It was regarded as one of Scottish football's top club jobs outside of Celtic and Rangers, and Wright's full-time responsibilities centred solely on team matters, with an administrative staff in support.
In addition, several players had taken a stand against manager George Farm with Alex Edwards, Barrie Mitchell and Willie Renton (ironically Wright's former captain at St Mirren) refusing to return to training after the summer break.
To cap a catalogue of misfortune, Club Chairman Leonard Jack, the man behind Alex Wright's appointment as manager, collapsed and died from a heart attack as he fought to stave off the financial crisis.
On the field, 3 wins, 7 draws, and the failure to avoid a succession of narrow defeats, left the team again in a precarious league position after 23 fixtures despite a defensive record bettered only by the top half-dozen clubs.
[18] When a new boardroom regime initiated further cost-cutting measures in February 1972, Wright was presented with a choice; remain with an immediate pay-cut and worsened conditions, or be replaced (as at St Mirren, he had opted to work without the protection of a contract).
Jackie Stewart had spent 4 years at Boghead from December 1968, raising standards and expectation in lifting the team from 14th in D2 to Champions in the final match of season 1971–72.
Difficulties in his home life and frustration at failing to secure promotion back to the top flight following League reorganisation led Wright to offer his resignation in February 1977.
The following year he travelled to Amsterdam with team manager and fellow director Sean Fallon in the anticipation of signing Dutch legend Johan Cruyff following earlier negotiations with the player's agent.
[25] Wright was widely credited with single-handedly keeping the club alive during an ownerless period in the mid-to-late 1980s[25] and was named Dumbarton Citizen of the Year in recognition of his efforts.
His salaried post was made redundant in late 1990 soon after a new regime had taken control, and Wright subsequently opted to relinquish his directorship and leave the club.
On the occasion of his death, his memory was honoured by full-page obituaries in the match programmes of former clubs Partick Thistle, East Fife, St Mirren and Dumbarton.