Bermuda is mourning the loss of arguably its most famous cricketer, Alma (Champ) Hunt, who died on Friday evening at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital at the age of 88.

The legendary allrounder and former Somerset Cricket Club Cup Match player was known for his heroics on the field of play, mostly as a top batsman, useful medium pace bowler and excellent slip fielder.

But he also went on to establish himself as a prominent administrator -- serving as president of Bermuda Cricket Board of Control for 18 years until 1983 when he stood down and was replaced by Ed Bailey. Hunt was also a founding member of Bermuda Cricket Umpires Association in 1962 and acted as their first president.

Many accolades have been attributed to Hunt over the years and yesterday a former team-mate and co-founder of the BCUA, Anthony (Sonny) Roberts, offered similar high praise, claiming Hunt was the greatest cricketer the Island had ever produced.

Roberts said Hunt would have broken all scoring records in Cup Match, records that probably would have still been intact today had he not spent a considerable amount of time playing professionally in Scotland from 1934 to 1947. As a result, he played just 12 Cup Matches over a 21-year period.

"Our top Cup Match players like the Lloyd Jameses and the other top names wouldn't have come close to his averages had he not missed so many Cup Matches through being away in Scotland. He was easily the best allrounder Bermuda has ever seen,'' said Roberts.

The name Hunt has been synonymous with cricket for more than 80 years with Amon Hunt, Alma's older brother, first establishing himself as a prominent Cup Match player for Somerset from 1919 to 1945. There were also three other brothers who made appearances in Cup Match.

But it was Amon -- who passed away in 1997 -- and the younger Alma, playing from 1927 to 1948, who went on to become the most celebrated cricketing brothers in the sport.

Island mourns cricket legend From Page 23 Despite an interrupted Cup Match career, Hunt made his mark on the classic, becoming the first Somerset player to score a century (104 in 1941) in the event. It was only the second century scored by a player from either side.

"I remember that performance. We were struggling at 107 for seven and he had scored 104 out of the total (176), it was amazing,'' recalled Roberts.

His Cup Match statistics still remain impressive to this day. He scored a total of 762 runs in 20 innings and had an average of 38.10 -- still one of the best averages in Cup Match history. Hunt's 762 runs is fifth on the aggregate list.

In the bowling department his name still ranks among the leaders, having taken a total of 45 wickets at a cost of 9.58. His best figures were six for 19 in 1932, which included a hat-trick. Hunt captained the Somerset team for one year, 1948, his final season as a player.

In addition to his herculean efforts on the field, Hunt is also remembered for the injustices he received at the hands of the West Indies Cricket Board of Control -- primarily in Trinidad and Tobago in 1933 after he was invited to participate in Test trials.

Despite outscoring legendary Jamaican batsman, George Headley, with two 50s in one game, the Bermudian was overlooked for Test selection as the Island at the time was not affiliated to WICBC. Bermuda's geographical position was also put forward as a reason why Hunt was excluded.

But such trials and tribulations didn't deter Hunt to the degree that he would become disenchanted with the sport.

He played professionally for many years for Aberdeenshire in Scotland and represented that country against Australia and Yorkshire in 1938.

After finishing playing in 1948 Hunt went to Columbia University in New York and shortly afterwards returned home to become a physical education teacher and later a well-respected cricket administrator and journalist.

An example of the great esteem to which Hunt is held came 18 months ago when the current Board president El James sought his services in an attempt to motivate Bermuda's national team players prior to their departure for the Red Stripe tournament in the Caribbean.

Hunt was taken to a training session at Police Field where he gave the players an inspirational pep talk -- a decision that James felt paid great dividends.

"Let's face it, Mr. Hunt is one of our great pioneers of the sport of cricket and I knew that it would be a great advantage for him to give words of advice,'' said James at the time.

"He pointed out how Bermuda had a great legacy in cricket and he reckoned that the players needed more guts on the field of play. He also noted that it was always important for them to feel that they could win.

"The real message that Mr. Hunt tried to instil was that success is not in the triumph but in the struggle. It's in the manner in which a player prepares himself and approaches the game, this will eventually bring out the true character of a player.'' A final tribute came from Roberts yesterday: "Nobody else in Bermuda has ever done more for cricket at any level than Champ Hunt. He was truly the best that we have ever seen.'' Alma (Champ) Hunt: died on Friday at the age of 88.

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