Daringly unorthodox with the bat and a quality swing bowler with the ball, Alan Dawson was a true entertainer in whatever he did. He played just a couple of Tests while featuring more in ODIs, as the selection panel looked upon him as a limited-overs specialist. That was a bit unfair on Dawson who had eventually proved himself in the domestic circuit with 300 First-class wickets , at a healthy average and strike-rate. He could swing the ball both ways and a fair clip, a quality that made him a very useful commodity to have in the side. Dawson formed a dangerous pace trio with Craig Matthews and Eric Simons for Western Province. The trio were largely responsible for their side's success during that period. As a batsman, he loved to thrill with an unabashed brand of strokeplay with his preference being to hit to unusual areas. After retirement, Dawson took up gardening on a large scale.