Early career Yeates played schoolboy football with Greenhills Boys and
Cherry Orchard in Dublin. He started his senior career at
Tottenham Hotspur, but first played professional football in loan spells with
Brighton & Hove Albion and
Swindon Town during the
2003–04 season. Loaned to Swindon as part of the transfer to Spurs of Swindon player
Leigh Mills, Yeates only played four games before being returned to
White Hart Lane after a disagreement with then manager
Andy King. He made his Spurs debut against
Wolves on the final day of the 2003–04
Premier League season, setting up a goal for
Robbie Keane. He made three first team appearances for Spurs. During the
2005–06 season, Yeates played on long-term loan at
Colchester United, scoring five league goals, as they achieved promotion from
League One. He also nearly scored but hit the post in that seasons FA cup run against
Chelsea. Prior to
2006–07 Yeates signed a two-year contract extension with Spurs. He joined
Championship team
Hull City on a season-long loan, but hardly featured for them before returning to his parent club midway through the season. He then signed a loan contract until the end of the 2006–07 season with another Championship side,
Leicester City. He scored on his Leicester début at the
Walkers Stadium in a 1–1 draw with
Luton Town. On 25 April 2007, having only featured 16 times for Leicester, and not once under
caretaker manager Nigel Worthington, he was allowed to return to Spurs after being deemed surplus to requirements.
Colchester United On 3 July 2007 he completed a permanent move to
Colchester United. Yeates was set to sign for Crystal Palace Football Club, but due to the fact that he failed his medical, the transfer was abandoned. He had a productive year in League One, during which time, he scored the first competitive goal at the new
Colchester Community Stadium in a game against Oldham.
Middlesbrough Yeates then signed for newly relegated Championship team
Middlesbrough for £500,000 on 26 June 2009. He made his début for Middlesbrough on 7 August 2009 in a 0–0 draw with
Sheffield United. In and out of the team in the first part of the season, he scored what turned out to be his only goal for Middlesbrough in their 5–1 win over
QPR in December 2009.
Sheffield United After finding himself surplus to requirements under new boss
Gordon Strachan, Yeates signed for Boro's Championship rivals
Sheffield United. He scored his first goal for Sheffield United in a 2–1 defeat at Preston North End on 9 February 2010. Having made the move, Yeates found himself playing no more regularly at
Bramall Lane than at Middlesbrough. In an eighteen-month stay, he was in and out of the side and never showed any real consistency. By the time
Micky Adams took over as manager of the Blades, Yeates was virtually frozen out of the first team altogether.
Watford In July 2011, Yeates signed for
Watford on a two-year deal for an undisclosed fee. He scored on his debut against
Burnley to put Watford 2–0 up, with the game finishing 2–2. Yeates was a regular in the Watford side up until their
FA Cup clash against
Tottenham Hotspur on 27 January, in which he lost his place to
Sean Murray. However, he continued to make substitute appearances and retained his place in the squad the following season under then-new manager,
Gianfranco Zola. During this period, Yeates was primarily played in a central role rather than his usual wide position, with Yeates stating that he actually preferred this new position On 7 June 2013, Watford announced that Yeates' contract would not be renewed and he was to be released as a free agent.
Bradford City On 3 July 2013, Yeates signed a two-year contract with
Bradford City, the third time that Yeates had worked under manager
Phil Parkinson, having previously played under him at Hull City and Colchester United. Yeates made his Bradford debut on 3 August, the opening day of the season, playing 66 minutes of a 2–2 draw against
Bristol City. and scored his first goal for the club during his second appearance, in a 4–0 win against
Carlisle United. On 26 November, Yeates came off the bench to score his second goal for the club in a 1–1 draw against
Notts County.
Oldham Athletic On 25 August 2015, Yeates joined
Oldham Athletic on a short-term deal. Yeates scored one goal in 20 games for the club.
Blackpool On 7 January 2016, Yeates joined
Blackpool on an initial 18-month deal from
Oldham Athletic with the option for a further year.
Notts County On 30 January 2017, Yeates signed for
Notts County.
Eastleigh On 28 June 2017, Yeates joined
National League side
Eastleigh on a two-year deal.
AFC Fylde Yeates left Eastleigh to join
AFC Fylde on 12 June 2019.
Bamber Bridge Yeates joined
Bamber Bridge from AFC Fylde in September 2020. ==Coaching career==