Editing James Hird (section)

==Early life==
Hird is the son of [[Allan Hird, Jr.|Allan]] and Margaret Hird. He was born in [[Canberra]], where his father worked in the public service and his mother was a teacher, although they had met in Melbourne.<ref name="Hird5">Hird (2006), p.5</ref> <!--The pair met in Melbourne before they moved to the Australian capital in 1969. Allan Hird, who had played four games for the Essendon Football Club in 1966–67, initiated the move, enabling him to be player-coach of Eastlake in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) football competition.--> Hird has two younger sisters. After first living in the Canberra suburb of [[Ainslie, Australian Capital Territory|Ainslie]], his family moved to [[Latham, Australian Capital Territory|Latham]]. When Hird was in high school, the family moved to the suburb of [[Reid, Australian Capital Territory|Reid]].<ref name="Hird10">'Reading the play: on life and leadership' by James Hird (2006), p.10</ref>

Hird participated in rugby league,<ref>{{Cite news | last = Hird  | first = James  | title = Why I love the idea of Israel Folau playing footy   | work = [[Herald Sun]]  | place =Australia  | publisher = Herald and Weekly Times | date = 7 May 2010  | url = http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/why-i-love-the-idea-of-israel-folau-playing-footy/story-e6frf9jf-1225863348614  | access-date = 8 May 2010}}</ref> ballet,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Di Pietro |first1=Kavisha |title=MEET THE DUNKLEYS; THE HOUSEHOLD THAT MAKE THINGS WORK |date=28 June 2019 |url=http://www.aflplayers.com.au/article/meet-the-dunkleys-the-household-that-make-things-work/ |publisher=AFL Players Association |access-date=17 October 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Rule |first1=Andrew |title=James Hird – the guy behind the footy great |url=https://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/opinion/james-hird-the-guy-behind-the-footy-great/news-story/38292deb5471eb3dc2e9cd5d9e20536f |website=Herald Sun |publisher=News Corp |access-date=17 October 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Cadzow |first1=Jane |title=The Fall |url=https://www.smh.com.au/sport/the-fall-20140224-33b6a.html |website=The Age  |date=28 February 2014 |access-date=17 October 2020}}</ref> and soccer in his youth.<ref name="Hird6-7">Hird (2006), p.6–7</ref> He played for the [[Ainslie Football Club]] in the [[AFL Canberra|ACTAFL]], and in June 1990, at the age of 17, he was a member of the league's senior representative team in a match against the [[Victorian Football Association]].<ref>{{cite news | title=VFA Cleary the best | work=The Sun News-Pictorial | date=11 June 1990 | author=Buivids, Amanda | page=51 | publication-place=Melbourne, VIC}}</ref>