Alex Hird, son of Essendon legend James, has been added to the Bombers VFL list, per News Corp's Paul Amy.
The 18-year-old had been a part of the club’s AFL academy - named after his father - in 2020, and has trained at Windy Hill over the past year. He’s now earned a shot to compete in the VFL, where he’ll likely play alongside brother Tom.
VFL: Alex Hird, son of Essendon champion James, promoted to the Bombers' VFL squad, listing Old Melburnians as his home club.
— Paul Amy (@PaulAmy375) April 22, 2022
Tom Hird was drafted to the Bombers in 2019 and is expected to spend time in the VFL across this season, meaning the brothers could feature on the same field this year.
Tom, 21, is unsigned at AFL level beyond 2022 and has not made his senior debut.
Both Alex and Tom split their time playing soccer as juniors, but have now committed to AFL after both spending time developing at the James Hird Academy.