The Otago Daily Times counts down the 150 greatest moments in Otago sport.
No 67: That penalty try (1995)
Not after 1994, when he penalised Otago in the dying minutes of a Ranfurly Shield challenge.
And he made sure he was public enemy No1 in the South the following year when he again blew his whistle against the boys in blue and gold.
Otago had made it to the final of the NPC after an up-and-down season.
It had lost to Auckland and Canterbury in the regular season, both at Carisbrook, and then in the final round-robin game, it was flattened by 60 points by North Harbour, again at home.
But it then travelled to Pukekohe for the NPC semifinal and managed to beat Counties 41-32.
So it journeyed to Eden Park to take on Auckland in the final.
Otago went on the attack straight away and clever kicks to the outside led to tries to fullback Jeff Wilson and winger Paul Cooke, playing his 100th game for the union.
Flanker Josh Kronfeld went off early and David Latta came on and played most of the match out of position on the side of the scrum.
With a few minutes left, Otago was ahead 19-16 but Auckland was pressing with its all-All Black front row to the fore.
Auckland got a scrum a few metres out and you knew what it was going to do. No8 Zinzan Brooke controlled the ball at the back and the scrum edged nearer the line.
Brooke then appeared to take his head out of the scrum, and Otago halfback Stu Forster, also playing his 100th game for the union, kicked the ball out from under Brooke's feet.
Hawke ran towards the goal posts, whistling a penalty try, ruling Forster had illegally kicked the ball out of the scrum.
Otago hearts sank as the dreaded Hawke had struck again.
Years later, Hawke admitted he probably got the call wrong, saying emotion had taken over and a referee should not have decided the game.
