Cricketer Phillip Hughes laid to rest

Thousands of people gathered Wednesday in the town of Macksville, on the east coast of Australia, for the funeral of cricket star Phillip Hughes, who died in hospital last Thursday of a cerebral hemorrhage after being struck by a ball during a domestic match.

The funeral service was held at Hughes' old school, which has the only hall in the town big enough to hold the thousands of mourners. It began with the song "Forever Young."

Using the hash tag #putyourbats out, cricket fans from around the world also posted photos on social media of cricket bats leaning against fences and gates in tribute.

Cricket players from across Australia flew into the small seaside town in northern New South Wales on Wednesday morning. India's acting captain Virat Kohli and West Indies great Brian Lara also attended to pay their respects, along with Prime Minister Tony Abbott who, in a statement last week, called Hughes' death "heartbreaking".

A huge number of political and community leaders were in attendance, as was Sean Abbott, the 22-year-old who bowled the delivery which fatallyinjured Hughes. He was consoled by members of Hughes' family - Australia test captain Michael Clarke, among the pallbearers, has already said Abbott cannot be held responsible.

Clarke, who had been at Hughes' bedside almost constantly during his two-day fight for life, choked back tears as he paid tribute to his "brother's" spirit.

"Phillip's spirit, which is now part of our game forever, will act as a custodian of the sport we all love. We must listen to it. We must cherish it. We must learn from it," Clarke said in his tribute.

"We must dig in and get through to tea. And we must play on. So rest in peace my little brother. I will see you out in the middle," finished Clarke, fittingly.

Live footage showed a full auditorium and mourners sitting on the grass outside the building.

Hughes' manager, James Henderson, said the family wanted everybody to celebrate the life of Phillip Hughes, who was just 25 years old when he died in what has been described as a freak accident.

ksb/jh (dpa, AFP)