One of Bermuda’s sporting greats, Austin “Cheesey” Hughes, has died at the age of 87.

Hughes excelled in three sports, billiards as a Bermuda champion, football with Pembroke Juniors and cricket with the Devonshire Recreation Club and Somerset Cup Match teams.

His name inevitably comes up in conversations about Bermuda’s sporting legends and in 2005, Tommy Aitchison, the former journalist, wrote a 61-page book on Hughes entitled A True Bermudian Champion, in which he chronicles Hughes’s sporting feats, including his encounters with England Test stars Sir Leonard Hutton and Frank Tyson during their tour of Bermuda.

“I’ve known Austin for about 60 years and we are great friends,” Aitchison told the Mid-Ocean News when the book was launched. “He was the most interesting individual I ever met in sport and he enjoyed sport more than anyone I’ve ever known.”

Two years after the book was published, Hughes was inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame in 2007 along with other outstanding athletes such as Charles Daulphin, Lloyd James and Eldon Raynor (all cricket), Ray Swan (road running), DeForest “Shorty” Trimingham and Albert Darrell (sailing), Frederick “Skipper” Ingham (martial arts), Joe Fereira (football) and Heather Brewer-Segal (tennis).

“We all felt he should have been among the early [Hall of Fame] selections but they held him back and gave it to some people who most of us thought ‘Cheesey’ was way ahead of,” said James. “But when he finally got it it was a relief.”

Hughes was named in the inaugural shortlist of 25 for the first Hall of Fame inductees in 2004, though he was not among the final ten selected. It was not until three years later that he was honoured.

That night at Southampton Princess, Hughes dedicated the award to the memory of his four deceased sons, Randall, Irving, Howard and Austin Jr, and late wife Ethelyn. “I did all of this for them ... but sadly none of them are here to see it,” an emotional Hughes told the audience.

James played against Hughes in Cup Match for six years and was a team-mate of his for Bermuda. Hughes, an allrounder, played club cricket for Devonshire Rec. “He was the best off-break bowler I’ve ever faced,” James said.

“I can remember one match at Devonshire Rec when I was playing for Southampton Rangers.

“We batted first and I hit him for five sixes in one over, when we used to have eight-ball overs. At that time I was known to be a bowler, but when they went to bat he hit me for six sixes in one over!

“I never forgot that day and we joked and talked about it just about every time we met. I can remember we played against [Jim Swanton’s XI] at Prospect and they had a fast bowler [Frank Tyson] who had just wrecked Australia and ‘Cheesey’ hit him for two [successive] sixes in one over.”

Tyson was rated as one of the fastest bowlers in the world at that time but Hughes, who worked the night shift as a pressman at The Royal Gazette, was not intimidated and took three wickets for 26 runs in 12 overs. James also took three wickets as the visiting side were bowled out for 134.

Hughes was the top batsman for Bermuda with 29 out of a total of 77, the highlight being the 18 he scored off one Tyson over. Hughes also took five wickets for 76 runs from 20 overs against the visiting Pakistan national team in 1958 in a two-day match at Devonshire Recreation Club, which the tourists won by seven wickets.

He also received sports citation and recognition awards for his exploits in cricket, football and billiards.

“We met off and on and less than a year ago we walked around town reminiscing,” recalled James.

“I can remember in my second year in Cup Match when I was one of the two opening bowlers for St George’s. We batted first and I got 41 and 59 runs and when he came on the ball I was a little worried because he broke the ball so sharp. He had good control.”

Hughes played for Somerset in Cup Match for ten years between 1951 and ‘60, taking 22 wickets from 127.5 overs at an average of 18.

He made his debut at the age of 24 after scoring 101 not out in the final trial match to become the first player from across the [Somerset] bridge to play for Somerset in Cup Match. He retired from the classic after the 1960 match, saying in his book that he didn’t want to try for 15 appearances and end up being dropped. Joe Bailey, who replaced Hughes as the team’s off spinner in 1963, remembers Hughes was always willing to pass on his knowledge.

“We always had some good cricket talks and in the first year I played Cup Match he had some good advice for me,” said Bailey. “After my first Cup Match he came and shook my hand and that made me feel good. Somerset were without an off-break bowler for three years.

“I remember the year he and Timmy Edwards [1954] bowled St George’s out for 36 runs in the first innings. He got three wickets for nine runs and Timmy got five for nine. He had touring teams on the run all the time. I found him a nice guy to talk to, he meant a lot to cricket.”

In that ’54 match, Hughes took four wickets for 45 in the second innings and Edwards three for 25 as St George’s reached 228 in the second innings, though they lost by six wickets.

Sam Paynter scored 81 for St George’s in the second innings as Hughes finally bowled him with a straight delivery after being advised by his captain, Woodgate Simmons, that he was turning the ball too much to hit the stumps.

Hughes worked as a prison officer for 18 years before retiring in 1982 at the rank of principal operations officer and controller of the prison farm.