James Edward Hayter was born on the Isle of Wight in 1979. He signed a professional deal with boyhood club AFC Bournemouth in 1996 and made his debut against Peterborough. With him struggling to fit in, he was loaned out to Salisbury City as a 19-year-old and made eight appearances.
A series of outstanding performances saw him back in regular team football. In October 2000, he scored four goals in a match away at Bury. He became widely known as the partner up front with Steven Fletcher, becoming one of the best strikers outside of the Premier League. He went on to win promotion in Division Three with The Cherries in 2003.
He is best known for his time at Dean Court for scoring the fastest hat-trick in the Football League after scoring three goals in 140 seconds in a 4-0 win against Wrexham, shortly after coming on. His parents attended the match but missed the hat-trick as they had to get the last ferry back to the Isle of Wight.
In 2006, Hayter teamed up with former manager Sean O'Driscoll at Doncaster. He had a shaky start to life in South Yorkshire, but soon became known for his heading ability. This proved useful in the 2008 Play-off final against Leeds at Wembley by heading in the goal that saw Donny promoted to the Championship for the first time ever.
Hayter struggled at first in the 2008/09 season, but found his real form during the 2010/11 campaign by opening the scoring during the first game of the season at Preston. His header against Middlesbrough in December was his 7th goal that season. He was injured for most of 2011/12 and was released at the end of his contract.
Shortly after his release, he signed for Yeovil Town in League One. He scored against his former club Doncaster with a header in a 2-1 win for Gary Johnson's side. He helped Yeovil win promotion to the Championship for the first time in their history. At Huish Park, he partners top scorer Paddy Madden and Sam Foley who acts in midfield.
He now lives in Tiverton with his partner and they have two children.
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