Robert Hayes’ flying feet and the thunderous power of his legs made the Nova Scotia Football League a conference to be respected throughout Canada in the 1950’s. Hayes toiled as a running back with Stadacona and Shearwater, where he won the MVP award three times, led the league in scoring twice and finished second twice.

He led his team to the Purdy Cup four times- emblematic of league supremacy. He was the first Maritime Football Union player to gain over 1000 yards in a season – 1265 yards in 133 carries in 1957 with the Shearwater Flyers. The Navy would not release him in time, which caused Hayes to have to turn down a contract offered by the Ottawa Roughriders of the CFL. Bob Hayes was inducted into the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame in 1980.