Kevin Hird
Personal information
Full name Kevin Hird[1]
Date of birth (1955-02-11) 11 February 1955
Place of birth Colne, England
Height 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)[2]
Position(s) Midfielder, right back
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1973–1979 Blackburn Rovers 132 (20)
1979–1984 Leeds United 181 (19)
1984–1986 Burnley 83 (23)
1986–19?? Colne Dynamoes
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Kevin Hird (born 11 February 1955) is an English former footballer who played as a midfielder or right back. He played in the Football League for Blackburn Rovers, Leeds United and Burnley. He started his career as a midfielder before being converted into a right back.

Early life

Hird was born in Colne on 11 February 1955, and grew up as a Burnley fan.[3]

Career

Hird developed through Blackburn Rovers's youth academy, joining as an apprentice in October 1970 and turning professional in February 1973.[4] He made his first team debut for the club towards the end of the 1973–74 season.[4] He was overlooked during the 1974–75 season as Blackburn were promoted from the Third Division as champions, but featured more frequently the following season.[4] Having started his career as a right-sided midfielder, he was successfully converted into a right back during the 1976–77 season by manager Jim Smith.[4]

Hird signed for First Division club Leeds United in March 1979 for a fee of £357,000, a record fee for both clubs and the highest fee paid for a full-back in British football at the time.[3][4] At Leeds, he was again used both as a midfielder and as a right back, and was noted for his "eye-catching" dribbling skills.[3] He was Leeds' top scorer for the 1979–80 season, albeit with just 8 goals, and held the responsibility of penalty-taker for three seasons.[5] In total, he made 200 appearances for Leeds and scored 21 goals.[3]

In summer 1984, Hird joined Third Division club Burnley.[4] He scored 16 league goals in his first season at the club as they were relegated to the Fourth Division.[3][4] He remained at the club for a further season before joining non-league Colne Dynamoes.[4]

Personal life

In January 2008, Hird was accused of police assault after allegedly slapping a female police officer across the face after urinating in the street.[6] Hird admitted to the charge, and was conditionally discharged for six months and ordered to pay £60 costs.[7]

References

  1. ↑ "Kevin Hird". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  2. ↑ Rollin, Jack (1981). Rothmans Football Yearbook: 1981-82. London: Queen Anne Press. p. 196. ISBN 0-362-02046-9. OCLC 868301130.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Jarred, Martin (1986). Leeds United: a complete record, 1919-1986. Derby: Breedon. p. 324. ISBN 0-907969-17-8. OCLC 20934819.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Jackman, Mike (1994). Blackburn Rovers: the official encyclopaedia. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 123. ISBN 1-873626-70-3. OCLC 32347139.
  5. ↑ "Kevin Hird". leedsunited.com. Leeds United F.C. 3 December 2003. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
  6. ↑ Bradshaw, Charlotte (9 January 2008). "Former pro footballer accused of police assault". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
  7. ↑ Magill, Peter (6 March 2008). "Former footballer urinated in street". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
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