The Hawks held off a spirited challenge from the South City Dragonz to win 20-18 and claim first place after the final round of the Otago spring competition at Moller Park on Saturday.
The match between the competition's top two teams was an arm wrestle in which the lead changed three times throughout the game.
The Hawks held a 14-12 lead at halftime, outscoring the Dragonz three tries to two.
They jumped out to an 8-0 lead after being camped inside the Dragonz half for the first 15 minutes.
When the Dragonz finally got into the Hawks half and strung together back-to-back sets they were rewarded with two good tries in as many minutes and held a four-point lead as halftime approached.
The Hawks drew level with a try to halfback Rema Smith.
Controversy surrounded the conversion, with the touch judges awarding it despite the objections from the Dragonz players. Dragonz captain A J Valentine said after the match he was adamant the kick missed.
Referee Lindsay Dunlop said he questioned the touch judges at the time but there was nothing he could do about it as the rules state a referee can only overrule a conversion if one flag had been raised as opposed to two.
The second half was an equally tight affair, with both teams scoring one try.
The Hawks extended their lead to eight points with a try to second-rower Jeremy McKee. The final quarter was a flurry of activity as both teams muscled up on defence and spread the ball as play went from end to end.
Dragonz hooker Paul Palesa gave his team hope when he was rewarded for a fine game with a try with five minutes to play.
But the Hawks held off a gallant challenge from the Dragonz to close out the game with a four tries to three win.
Players to stand out for the Hawks were centre Blair Polwart for his all-round game and prop Mike Mitaere for his workrate and defensive effort.
For the Dragonz, stand-off Sam Eriepa had a fine match. He scored two tries and looked dangerous all game while lock Craig Masina was a workhorse for his team in both attack and defence.
University beat the South City Dragonz B 52-18 and will now play the Hawks in one semifinal.
University prop Lafi Faamoe scored two tries and broke the line on many occasions.
The South Pacific Raiders strung together five wins in a row when they beat the Kia Toa Tigers 40-24.
The third placed Raiders will play the Dragonz in next week's other semifinal in what shapes up as a torrid battle.
