Hamilton started his career with his hometown club Bradford City, making his debut at the age of 17 in 1994. He helped Bradford win promotion to the First Division by scoring in the 1996 Football League Second Division play-off Final. He left Bradford less than a year later for a club record £2m having played more than 100 career games. He instead signed for Newcastle United, for whom he played in both the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup. However, he was restricted to just 12 league games in five seasons and spent time on loan with four other clubs. He moved on to Cardiff City and Grimsby Town, but after a brief spell at Barnet for whom he never played, he retired at the age of 27.