Former Essendon coach James Hird has ended his AFL exile and taken up a part-time consultancy role with Greater Western Sydney.
Hird hasn't held an official role in the AFL since exiting his post as coach of Essendon in August, 2015 in the wake of the club's infamous supplement saga.
The Giants confirmed on Tuesday evening they had appointed Hird as a leadership advisor, where the former Brownlow Medalist will work part-time with the club's senior and emerging leaders.
Hird said he was excited to work alongside senior coach Leon Cameron and the players and revealed how connections within the club helped him secure the role.
“It probably came about through Matt de Boer actually, I had got to know him quite well through some work away from the club and he invited me to come down and have lunch with the players while the team were in Melbourne last year,” Hird said.
“Mark McVeigh then asked if I would come and speak to the group about playing football in Melbourne, my experiences in the AFL, and impart some of my life journey. For younger players it’s good to hear, but also for senior players.
“Getting to know Leon (Cameron), I’ve had a huge amount of respect for him over a very long period of time, so getting the chance to work with him was something I was really looking forward to.
“It’s a part-time role, and very much around the leadership group but also around the emerging leaders and sharing my experiences in football and trying to get them to lead and encourage and work hard on that side of things.”
Hird won two premierships, a Brownlow Medal (1996) and became a five-time All Australian with the Bombers before retiring in 2007 on 243 AFL games.
Late in 2010, Hird was appointed the Bombers' senior coach ahead of the 2011 AFL season.
In 2013, he was suspended for 12 months over his role in the infamous Essendon supplement saga, before returning to the role at the end of the 2014 season.
Hird then resigned as Bombers coach in August 2015 amid poor results on the field as the Bombers continued to deal with the fallout from the supplement scandal, his coaching career standing at 85 games.
Giants general manager of football Jason McCartney said Hird had plenty to offer and expects his insights as a coach and player will prove to be a valuable asset for the club this season.
"An opportunity presented to work with James in a leadership consultancy role in 2022 and given how successful James has been in the game, we knew he would have a lot to offer our club," McCartney said.
"It's fantastic to have someone of James' calibre join our program and work with our leadership group and emerging leaders' group.
"We welcome James' insights from both his storied football career and his work in the business world."
