Hughes made his debut for Ireland against Hampshire in September 1965 in a first-class match. It was very much a poor start to his international career, as he scored a duck in each innings and only took one wicket, and he did not play for Ireland again for almost three years.
In June 1972 he played his final first-class match against Scotland and was again absent from the team for an extended period, this time for over five years, returning for a match against Sussex in July 1977. His last match for Ireland was against the MCC at Eglinton, County Londonderry in June 1978.