CRAIG Westcarr scored the first hat-trick of his career as Notts County crushed nine-man Hereford United 5-0 in League Two at Meadow Lane today.

Westcarr put them ahead in the first half with his seventh goal of the season, and then hit a second-half double.

He completed his treble from the penalty spot before Luke Rodgers grabbed two late goals.

Attacking the Kop, Neal Bishop miscued high and wide from outside the penalty area on five minutes.

Hereford almost broke the deadlock on 15 minutes when defender Daniel Preston met Matt Done's free-kick into the box with a great glancing header.

It looked set to creep inside the far post until the Magpies' No.1 Kasper Schmeichel reacted rapidly and dived to his right to parry it away.

The Magpies stirred, and Rodgers volleyed powerfully into the net from close-range just four minutes later, but the Notts' striker was adjudged to be offside when Karl Hawley flicked the ball into his path.

Gavin McCallum almost seized onto an under-hit back-pass from John Thompson minutes later, but Schmeichel was alert to the danger posed by the Bulls' pacy striker and raced out of his penalty area to clear the ball to safety.

In reply, the Magpies threatened on 26 minutes. Jamie Clapham lifted a free-kick into the box from near the halfway line that fell to Westcarr and he aimed a dangerous ball across the six-yard box that Hereford keeper Chris Adamson parried away under pressure.

McCallum blazed over the bar from an acute angle just after the half-hour mark, after an attempted clearance ricocheted to him inside the penalty area.

Notts went 1-0 ahead through Westcarr on 34 minutes.

The opportunity was gifted to the Magpies' winger as Sam Gwynne slipped inside the penalty area as he went to clear the ball.

Westcarr pounced on the loose ball, and drove it low under Adamson from close-range.

Notts threatened again four minutes into the second half. Bishop chipped a pass perfectly into Hawley inside the penalty area. He spun past two defenders and drove a low effort at goal that Adamson saved.

Westcarr doubled their lead on 56 minutes with a great goal.

It came at the end of a quick counter-attack, and the Magpies' winger swept past a defender inside the penalty area before firing a powerful left-foot effort past Adamson from ten yards.

Delroy Facey replaced Hawley on 67 minutes, and got involved instantly, flicking a long ball into the path of Rodgers inside the box.

The pacy striker almost got on the end of it, but Adamson beat him to the ball to deny him an opportunity to extend the Magpies' lead.

Facey did exactly the same minutes later, and this time Rodgers beat Adamson to the ball, but was brought down inside the box.

The Bulls' keeper was sent off and Westcarr stepped up to complete his hat-trick from the spot, sending substitute stopper Adam Bartlett the wrong way.

Westcarr was substituted minutes later, and walked off to rapturous applause from the home fans. Matt Hamshaw replaced him.

Mike Edwards also came on for Bishop on 81 minutes.

Rodgers should have scored on 85 minutes when he was sent racing clean through on goal. He burst into the penalty area but miscued wide of Bartlett's right-hand post.

He did make it 4-0 from the penalty spot on 89 minutes, after Paul Downing was adjudged to have stopped a strike from Hamshaw on the goal-line.

Like Adamson, Downing was sent off, and Rodgers rifled the spot-kick past Bartlett.

Notts were not finished, and in the final minute, Rodgers met John Thompson's right-wing cross to make it 5-0 from close-range.

NOTTS: Schmeichel, Thompson, Lee, Hunt, Clapham, Westcarr (Hamshaw, 75), Ravenhill, Bishop (Edwards, 81), Davies, Hawley (Facey, 67), Rodgers. Subs: Hoult, Canham, Fairclough, Akinbiyi.

HEREFORD: Adamson (sent off, 71), Gwynne, Downing, Preston, Rose, Pugh, Lunt, McQuilkin, Done (Morris, 59), Constantine (Bartlett, 72), McCallum. Subs: Green, Valentine, Jones, Weir, Manset.

ATTENDANCE: 6,036 (269 away).