Oh for a bite of hat-trick delight

Who has scored York City's fastest-ever treble? Alf Patrick, Arthur Bottom, Norman Wilkinson, Peter Wragg, Paul Aimson, Keith Walwyn, John Byrne, Paul Barnes?

Nope. It was none of those goal-getting Minstermen.

The accolade goes to one-season wonder John Edgar.

He scored all three goals which beat Accrington Stanley at Bootham Crescent on October 3, 1959, in Division Three (North) in just six minutes.

The 1959-60 campaign was Edgar's only full season with City as a serious injury the following season effectively finished his City career. He was leading scorer with 15 goals after joining from Gillingham.

The Barnsley-born forward moved to Hartlepool in June 1961, then to Exeter, before finishing his playing days with Scarborough in the Midland League.

Midfielder Steve Spooner ran Edgar close to the City record, scoring an eight-minute hat-trick against Hartlepool in a 4-1 Littlewoods Cup win on August 29, 1989 - the second-fastest in the club's history.

To find the most recent hat-trick, you have to go back seven years and 11 months to March 30, 1996 when Gary Bull scored all three at Wrexham in a 3-2 win as part of an impressive eight in 15 games tally.

And the last treble at Bootham Crescent was recorded three years before that when Paul Barnes hit four against Scunthorpe United.

How City could do with a hat-trick hero at the moment. Chris Brass's boys haven't scored three in a game this season, let alone three in two minutes 20 seconds as super-sub Hayter did against Wrexham.

High-speed hat-tricks

1min 50secs: Eduardo Maglioni (Independiente) v Gimnasia, 1973

2mins 14secs: James O'Connor (Shelbourne) v Bohemians, 1967

2mins 20secs: James Hayter (Bournemouth) v Wrexham, 2004

2mins 30secs: Jock Dodds (Blackpool) v

Tranmere, 1943

2mins 30secs: Jimmy Scarth (Gillingham) v

Leyton Orient, 1952

3mins 30secs: Gary Talbot (Chester) v

Crewe, 1965

Updated: 11:31 Saturday, February 28, 2004