Hat-trick

A hat-trick or hat trick in sports is the achievement of a positive feat three times in a game, or another achievement based on the number three in some sports.

The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson's taking three wickets with three consecutive deliveries. Fans held a collection for Stephenson, and presented him with a hat bought with the proceeds. The term was used in print for the first time in 1868. The term was eventually adopted by many other sports including hockey, association football, water polo and team handball.

A hat-trick occurs in association football when a player scores three goals (not necessarily consecutive) in a single game, whereas scoring two goals constitutes a brace. In common with other official record-keeping rules, goals in a penalty shootout are excluded from the tally. The extra time in a knockout cup match may also be calculated towards a player's potential hat-trick. The fastest recorded time to score a hat-trick is 70 seconds, a record set by Alex Torr in a Sunday league game in 2013. The previous Guinness world record of 90 seconds was held by Tommy Ross playing for Ross County against Nairn County on 28 November 1964.

The first hat-trick in an international game was by Scottish player John McDougall, against England on 2 March 1878.American player Bert Patenaude scored the first hat-trick in the FIFA World Cup, against Paraguay in the inaugural event. Two hat-tricks have been scored in a final, by Geoff Hurst for England in the 1966 final during extra time against West Germany, and Carli Lloyd against Japan in the 2015 Women's World Cup final. Lloyd's was the fastest hat-trick scored in a World Cup final, but in the earlier qualifying stages, Fabienne Humm of Switzerland had achieved an even faster hat-trick, in the 47th, 49th and 52nd minutes against Ecuador.

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