Phil Hughes

As a teenager, Hughes played for junior teams at Burnley during the school holidays. Hughes' senior career began when he was signed as an apprentice for the youth team at Manchester United in 1981 after leaving school. In the 1981–82 the youth side reached the final of the FA Youth Cup. Hughes started in goal in both legs of the tie but the team were defeated 6–7 on aggregate by Watford. Despite being a promising young goalkeeper, he failed to obtain a professional contract or make a first team appearance for the club and left in January 1983 to sign for Football League Second Division outfit Leeds United on a free transfer. Hughes did not play any matches in his first six months at Leeds and during the 1983–84 campaign he appeared in just two first-team games as he remained an understudy to Scotland international goalkeeper David Harvey. He played four league matches and one FA Cup tie the following season before the signature of Mervyn Day spelled the end of Hughes' Leeds United career. He left the club in the summer of 1985 and transferred to Third Division side Bury. He played more than 50 games during the 1985–86 season as Bury struggled to a 20th-place finish in the division. In spite of the team's poor league position, Hughes was selected for the Northern Ireland squad for the 1986 FIFA World Cup. He played 32 league matches the following season before a serious shoulder injury curtailed his campaign. His form never fully returned after the injury and he was allowed…

Hughes played a number of matches at various youth levels for Northern Ireland. He was first called up to the senior Northern Ireland squad in late 1984 but did not play for the team at that time. Following his performances for Bury, manager Billy Bingham included Hughes in the 22-man squad for the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico. However, he was restricted to a place on the bench as Pat Jennings kept goal throughout the tournament. Jennings retired following the competition and Hughes became first choice goalkeeper. He made his international debut on 15 October 1986 in the 0–3 loss to England at Wembley. In the process, he became the only Bury goalkeeper to ever win international caps while playing for the club. He kept a clean sheet his second game for Northern Ireland as the side secured a 0–0 draw away at Turkey in a qualifier for UEFA Euro 1988. His final international appearance came on 18 February 1987 as the team drew 1–1 with Israel in a friendly. The shoulder injury he incurred playing for Wigan Athletic kept him out of the Northern Ireland setup and his place in the team was taken by George Dunlop.