"Now I feel like I'm letting out a long breath that I've held in for a long time."
"I finally told my wife I was gay a few weeks ago.
"She blamed herself when we ¬separated but I knew she'd done nothing wrong. I couldn't bear it any more, the guilt of it all, of her not knowing why I left. It was eating me up.
"I went to her and asked if I could have a word. My stomach was in knots. We sat at the kitchen table and I said, 'There's something I need to tell you'.
He continued, adding: "I couldn't get the words out, I felt like I was going to be sick. But I managed to say it.
"She didn't say anything at first. I explained why and how I felt, it was very emotional. We were both in tears.
"She didn't ask a lot of questions, but she was supportive. She was totally blind-sided. She'd had absolutely no idea.
"It was incredibly tough, but for me it was a weird situation because it also felt liberating."
Hirst first thought that he might be gay during his teenage years but says by his late-teens that he was in total denial.
"By the time I was 18, I was in complete denial, hoping it would go away. It was inconceivable to tell anybody how I was feeling," he said.
"I didn't have it right in my own head, so how could I tell anybody?
"Society dictates that when you're a 16-year-old lad you have a girlfriend, you sleep with her and that's how it is.
"Especially as a rugby player and a lad who grew up on a council estate. You go out, go drinking, carrying on - that's what you do. I convinced myself, no way could I be gay, it was inconceivable."
During his darkest days, Hirst admits he considered taking his own life.
"On the worst days I'd think, 'I can't do this, I'd rather be dead than for it all to come out.'
"I never got as far as actually tying a noose or having tablets in my hand. But I thought how I would do it, where I would do it, when I would do it.
"Thankfully I have friends and family I love and was able to talk myself out of it."
His struggle became easier earlier this year when he began to come to terms with his sexuality.
"One day, a few months ago, I just thought, 'You know what? Actually, this is who I am. I'm gay. I felt I could finally be honest with myself."
Hirst spoke emotionally about the support he received from his teammates.
"The support from my team-mates and other rugby league players has really surprised me, it's all been positive.
"These are tough blokes. We go out on the field together and it's 26 blokes knocking seven shades out of each other.
"But on the other side of it, you go through blood, sweat and tears together - and they've been there for me when I needed them most."
