24 February 2004 - I Can Do One Of Those In 140 Seconds (It's Not The Hat-Trick)

On 24 February 2004, Bournemouth substitute forward James Hayter set a Football League record when he scored a hat-trick in just 2 minutes and 20 seconds. And it wasn't even his biggest event of the week.

Hayter had been with the Cherries since 1996 and had already tied a club record when he scored four against Bury in October 2000. But that was a relativiely minor accomplishment when compared to his performance against Wrexham in February 2004.

Bournemouth were already up 3-0 when Hayter came on in the 84th minute, but scored twice in the 86th minute then once more in the 88th minute. With all three goals coming in the span on 140 seconds, it was the fastest hat-trick in English league history, beating the previous record of 130 seconds set by Gillingham's Jimmy Scarth in 1952. Unfortunately for Hayter, his parents did not see his record accomplishment, having left early when they thought he wasn't going to play.

Despite the record hat-trick, the most memorable event of Hayter's week actually occurred three days earlier with the birth of his son.

1 November 1952 - They Can't Call Him "Jimmy Scarce" Anymore

On 1 November 1952, Gillingham's Jimmy Scarth entered the record books by scoring what was, at the time, the Football League's fastest hat-trick.

The accomplishment came in a Division Three (South) match against Leyton Orient, played at Gills' home ground, Priestfield Stadium. It was shaping up to be a dismal season for Gillingham, who on the day were sitting in 17th place out of 24 teams. Orient were right behind them in the 18th spot, giving the contest the appearance of an early relegation battle.

Scarth had just joined Gillingham that year from Tottenham. Although part of the Spurs side that won the League in 1951, Scarth never fully found his form at White Hart Lane, making only 7 league appearances (and scoring only 3 goals) between 1948 and 1952. Surprisingly, he matched that tally against Orient alone.

Initial reports record his hat-trick as coming in at 2 minutes and 30 seconds, the fastest in Football League history at the time. The record fell in 2004, when Bournemouth's James Hayter scored a hat-trick of his own in 2 minutes, 20 seconds. Subsequent reports claim that Scarth's goals spanned 2 minutes flat, but the League recognizes only the originally reported time.

24 February 2004 - I Can Do One Of Those In 140 Seconds (But Not The Hat-Trick)

On 24 February 2004, Bournemouth substitute forward James Hayter set a Football League record when he scored a hat-trick in just 2 minutes and 20 seconds. And it wasn't even his biggest event of the week.

Hayter had been with the Cherries since 1996 and had already tied a club record when he scored four against Bury in October 2000. But that was a relativiely minor accomplishment when compared to his performance against Wrexham in February 2004.

Bournemouth were already up 3-0 when Hayter came on in the 84th minute, but scored twice in the 86th minute then once more in the 88th minute. With all three goals coming in the span on 140 seconds, it was the fastest hat-trick in English league history, beating the previous record of 130 seconds set by Gillingham's Jimmy Scarth in 1952. Unfortunately for Hayter, his parents did not see his record accomplishment, having left early when they thought he wasn't going to play.

Despite the record hat-trick, the most memorable event of Hayter's week actually occurred three days earlier with the birth of his son.

1 November 1952 - They Can't Call Him "Jimmy Scarce" Anymore

On 1 November 1952, Gillingham's Jimmy Scarth entered the record books by scoring what was, at the time, the Football League's fastest hat-trick.

The accomplishment came in a Division Three (South) match against Leyton Orient, played at Gills' home ground, Priestfield Stadium. It was shaping up to be a dismal season for Gillingham, who on the day were sitting in 17th place out of 24 teams. Orient were right behind them in the 18th spot, giving the contest the appearance of an early relegation battle.

Scarth had just joined Gillingham that year from Tottenham. Although part of the Spurs side that won the League in 1951, Scarth never fully found his form at White Hart Lane, making only 7 league appearances (and scoring only 3 goals) between 1948 and 1952. Surprisingly, he matched that tally against Orient alone.

Initial reports record his hat-trick as coming in at 2 minutes and 30 seconds, the fastest in Football League history at the time. The record fell in 2004, when Bournemouth's James Hayter scored a hat-trick of his own in 2 minutes, 20 seconds. Subsequent reports claim that Scarth's goals spanned 2 minutes flat, but the League recognizes only the originally reported time.