The Hawks

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The Hawks "Crazy Hawk Lady" team logo since late 2008.

The Hawks, founded by members of the 2008 League's "Front Team", was one of two teams consisting of former Front Team players in the 2009 Buce League. It was generally considered the most controvertial team of the 2009 Summer League mostly due to captain Michael Read's off-field lifestyle.

[edit] 2009 Summer League

The Hawks celebrate the Grand Final's first points, and Andrew Shakespeare's, The Hawks' and the League's first Double Buce, leaving the score at this stage in the game at 4-1.

The original lineup of the team in late 2008 consisted of:

• Michael Read (captain)
• Mandeep Anand
• Nick Allan
• Wilson Leung
• Andrew "Shakey" Shakespeare
• Daniel "Dandy" Herd
• Johan Siritharan

The team were renowned for their determination in the final two rounds of the Summer 2009 League in their attempts at stopping the formidable Avalanches from securing the Grand Final win, but these efforts fell short of their goal, leaving The Hawks as runners up for the league. Rumours of strenuous and, at times, inhumane training practices were abundant during this time.

[edit] 2009 Winter League

After a tumultuous time for the former Front Team representatives, both the Gritz and Hawks teams were left short of numbers for the Winter 2009 League. Many players such as Michael Read and Wilson Leung left Newcastle for other cities, including Sydney and Brisbane, pursuing academic and career-related paths, whilst others, including Samuel Curley and Mandeep Anand, could not participate in the Winter League due to similar commitments at home. The player shortage forced the two former front teams to merge, leaving them with a common lineup of:

• Nick Allan (captain)
• Mitch Furner - Hawks stalwart and one of the team's most valuable attackers
• Laurie Jones - A dedicated new recruit for the Hawks and a rookie Buce player from the familiar proving grounds of Merewether High School. Broke his ankle playing soccer before Round 5 of the league and as a result missed the remainder of the season.
• Andrew "Shakey" Shakespeare - When he wasn't reffing. Also a high scorer for the team. Scored the team's only double buce of the 2008 Summer League
• Daniel "Pom" Carr - When he wasn't reffing. The only Hawk who can stand up to the league's tallest players.
• Tim "Tabel" Abel - When he wasn't at footy. He's pretty coordinated.
• Daniel "Dandy" Herd - The team's only Shortland player. An aggressive defender.
• and Samuel Curley - When he wasn't working. Won "Laziest Player" in 2008. Can score sometimes.

Former captain Michael Read is also rumoured to be attempting to make it to some of this league's games, even though he has relocated to Brisbane, or Holland. Phillip Chow played the Hawks' last game of the Winter League in Round 7. However, the Hawks failed to qualify for the semi-finals, going down to The Toecutters in their final game of the season.

[edit] The Uniform

Timeout tactics at the 2009 Summer Grand Final. Then Gritz player and future Hawks top scorer Mitch Furner listens in.

The Hawks classic uniform, as worn in the 2009 Buce League.

The instantly recognisable blue and white colours of The Hawks were agreed upon by the original members for several reasons, the first being that blue is the colour of blue jays, blueberries, the sky and therefore the ocean, and the planet Neptune. Blue is also the primary flag colour of many strong modern countries, such as Israel, Greece, and Somalia. But the biggest reason Blue was chosen was that it has a wavelength of roughly 440–490 nm, which pleased then captain, Michael Read. When asked about the secondary colour, white, Michael Read explained that "white is the superior colour, racially" and that "there was little choice involved".

[edit] Trivia

• Andrew Shakespeare was the first Buce player not originating from the Quad Team to enter the Double Buce Club. Mitch Furner was the second.
• The numbers "0", "2", "4", and "9" appeared on the uniforms of Hawks players Nick Allan, Andrew Shakespeare, Michael Read and Mandeep Anand, respectively, for the 2009 Summer Buce League Grand Final. It has been revealed that the numbers were chosen randomly, with the exception of "0", which was chosen "for teh lulz".