Hughes gave more than 40 years of loyal service to the club, remaining a hugely popular member of the team behind the scenes at Molineux right up until he sadly passed away peacefully at Compton Care Hospice hospital on Friday 26th February.
A fanatical Wolves supporter his entire life, Hughes proudly joined the club staff in the early 1980s and has since remained an integral member of the Molineux team in a variety of roles, most recently club historian.
Born in Codsall in 1933, the old gold was the only colour for Graham, ever since first stepping foot inside Molineux for a Wartime League Cup semi-final victory over West Bromwich Albion in 1942.
For many years, his love of Wolves sat separate to an eventful career, which began when his heating engineer apprenticeship was followed by national service with the Royal Corps Signals.
Hughes’ time in the army, which he spoke proudly of, saw him serve in Taunton, and then Bristol, but it was Wolverhampton where his heart lay.
Fortunately, work didn’t get in the way of a 1960 trip to Wembley to see Wolves lift the FA Cup trophy, nor in 1974 and 1988, as the old gold enjoyed League Cup and Sherpa Van Trophy success.
It was shortly after the club’s 1980 League Cup win over Nottingham Forest when Hughes officially began his long-standing career at Molineux, initially as a handyman at the social club where Dave Wagstaffe regularly frequented.
Then came a role in stadium maintenance, which saw him assist the ground staff, keep the dressing rooms in pristine condition, pack the team coach for away games and distribute post.
However, it was his responsibility to keep managers and players topped up, both with hot drinks and high spirits, in the Molineux tunnel which arguably meant most to Hughes, who regularly recited memories of that era fondly.
Despite retiring in 2012, Hughes, or ‘Fizzer’, as he was affectionally known by those at Molineux, couldn’t keep away and his love of football memorabilia and programmes saw him take on historian responsibilities, maintaining the club’s reception trophy cabinets and providing tours around the stadium he loved dearly.
But his role went much beyond that, with daily stories from “during the war” and “the good old days” keeping staff and visitors to Molineux upbeat, and displaying both his dry sense of humour and warm personality.
Fittingly, the Graham Hughes Stand, erected in 2003 and named in tribute to the Wolves legend, remains in place at Molineux, ready for the return of supporters – a day which would have made Hughes so proud.
Black armbands will be worn by the team for Saturday’s game at Newcastle United, to pay tribute to a man who will remain in the hearts of so many of the Wolves family.
We will all miss you, Graham.
