PETER Hughes has been fortunate enough to have travelled the world through his rugby connections.

Whether as an international referee, an RFU official or simply as a fan, Hughes has had his passport stamped in no fewer than 37 different countries.

He has been one of Lancashire best servants to the game for the best part of half a century which has been recognised with a national award from the Torch Trophy Trust.

However, Burnley Rugby Club is where he calls home.

It's a club he has had a 44-year association with and has served in a variety of roles but never as a player.

"I moved to Burnley when I opened my dental practice in the town," said the now retired 70-year-old.

"I had already made the decision that once I had my own practice, I would stop playing.

"So unfortunately, although I have been associated with the club for so long, I never got the chance to play for Burnley."

When Hughes joined the club back in 1963, bringing in imports would probably have meant signing a player from Colne or Nelson!

These days Burnley has three overseas players in its ranks.

"We have an Australian and New Zealander and, in Getty Shenkel, a South African who has returned to the club. So we must be doing something right."

Currently Burnley are second in the North Lancashire Division One League.

"The club has changed a lot since I first joined it has moved with the times," added Hughes who was an international referee during the seventies.

"I am just a committee man these days but I would like to think I have played some part in the club's development and plans for the future."

While Burnley Rugby Club is one of his main loves, the other is refereeing.

Hughes has been a member of the Manchester and District Referees' Society ever since he decided to become a referee and still plays an active role.

He currently co-ordinates a Junior Referee Scheme for over 14s in the North West which operates in tandem with RFU referee training courses.

"There is a good uptake from local youngsters which is encouraging.

"We cover a wide area but I think that the experience of refereeing in Junior events away from their own school or club and these courses are very important as we need to continue to develop find new, young referees."

Hughes who, by own admission was never quite big enough or are quick enough to make it as a top class player, captained Kersal in his playing days and was once reserve for a Lancashire trial.

However, while Hughes never got the chance to make an impact on the pitch for Burnley, he certainly did off.

Within a year of joining the Holden Road-based club, he became fixture secretary and later president of the Lancashire County RFU - the first and only member of Burnley RUFC, then called Calder Vale - to have achieved the honour.

While his playing days had ended, it didn't mean it was time to hang up his boots as he switched his attentions to refereeing.

"I am the type of person who always needs to know what I am doing.

"So when I made the decision to stop playing rugby I always knew I was going to become a referee.

"In my last year of playing, I made it my business to get to know all the referees who visited Kersal.

"It made the cross over from player to referee all the more smoother."

Hughes spent five years refereeing with the Manchester and District Referees' Society before being fast tracked as a match official onto the RFU County Panel, culminating with him spending two years on the International Panel.

He refereed four international games; France v Romania, Scotland v Japan and USA v Canada with the Five Nations match between Ireland and Scotland at Lansdown Road in 1978 the pinnacle.

"Refereeing at that level was an obvious highlight for me.

"The likes of Colin Deans, John Rutherford and Roy Laidlaw were in the Scotland side who all went on to play more than 50 times for their country while John O'Driscoll, (a former pupil at Stonyhurst College), Tony Ward, Moss Keane and Willie Duggan played for Ireland."

Hughes refereed at and organised referees at the Caribbean Championships in Georgetown, Guyana; the Asian Championships in Taipei, Taiwan and the European Under 19s Championships in Hilversum, Holland.

On retiring from active refereeing he later went on to serve as a referee assessor at International, RFU and Society level.

Later he acted as a liaison officer for the Western Samoa team that famously beat Wales in the 1991 Rugby World Cup and for the touring New Zealand and South African sides.

"Rugby has been very good to me," added Hughes.

"I've been fortunate to have refereed at the highest level, travelled all around the world and have made a lot of friends."

As well as Hughes' refereeing work he has been a tremendous contribution to schools rugby.

He joined the RFU Committee in 1987 as a Lancashire representative and served for 10 years, during which time he was one of the RFU representatives on the England Rugby Football Schools Union.

On one tour to Australia with the English Schools side in 1995 future stars of the game included Jonny Wilkinson and Andrew Sheridan.

On a different international front, his expertise also contributed to the successful organisation of the Commonwealth Games Sevens when the games were held in Manchester in 2002.

He was responsible for recruiting, training and managing 135 volunteers from rugby in the North West who helped to make that element of the Games so successful.

The knock-on effect of his success with that project was his involvement in the 2003 Under 21 Rugby World Cup when it was staged in England, his brief then being to recruit, train and manage the liaison officers for each of the 12 teams.

"Working on the Commonwealth Games is one of my proudest moments," added Hughes.

"It was voluntary work and it was something I did for 18 months.

"I called on all my contacts in the North West to help me out and it was very rewarding."

Hughes will relieve his Torch Trophy Trust Award from the Duke of Kent at the Army and Navy Club in London on Thursday.

"My first reaction on receiving the news was simply Why me?'" admitted Hughes.

"Because I know so many people in different areas of our game who are working so hard on a voluntary basis, "It's obviously a great honour, but it also makes you feel humble when there are so many people who deserve recognition for their efforts.

"It's also important to appreciate how much fun and satisfaction being involved has given me and how many wonderful friendships I have made in the process.

"I am very flattered but it is not just for me it is for Burnley Rugby Club as well.

"And if it raises the profile of the club then that can only be a good thing."