Phillip Hughes death: South Australia chief executive Keith Bradshaw reveals club are 'devastated and shattered' at tragic loss

Hughes died on Thursday after being hit in the back of the neck while playing for South Australia in a Sheffield Shield match

Chief executive Keith Bradshaw has revealed South Australia are "devastated" and "shattered" at the death of their team-mate Phillip Hughes.

Hughes was batting for the Adelaide-based outfit against New South Wales at the Sydney Cricket Ground when he received a fatal blow to the head after being struck by a bouncer on day one of their Sheffield Shield game on Tuesday.

The game was abandoned shortly afterwards and the players from both teams have been offered counselling, but Hughes' death, which was confirmed on Thursday, has left South Australia distraught.

A clearly emotional Bradshaw told the media in Adelaide: "The players are devastated, they are shattered. Phillip was a very popular and loved member of the team. They are trying as best as they can to come to terms with this tragic loss.

"We are supporting them through that with professional help and it's a day-by-day proposition at the minute.

"Right now, none of us feel that anything will be back to normal to be quite honest. We're taking it hour by hour, day-by-day.

"Cricket and everything else is just secondary at the moment to just caring for our players, the family and all those players that have been involved.

"All the players deal with this in different ways and we have the professional counsellors that are here working each with them individually.

"I think it's been very important that we've tried to keep the team together as much as possible so they can support one another in their outflowing of grief."

Bradshaw also confirmed that this weekend's grade cricket games would be postponed in South Australia, adding: "There is just so much emotion and stress at the minute."

PA