Faces in the crowd: HawkHead Yvonne White

During the Illawarra Hawks' 43-year existence, 221 players have pulled on the club's jersey.

But the number of fans who have supported the foundation club during that period is exponentially more.

As such, the club has decided to profile some of the most prominent and longest-serving HawkHeads with our new 'faces in the crowd' series.

First up is Yvonne White, who attended her first game, with her husband John in 1983 and alongside then court announcer Geoff Phillips, who was having the night off.

"We were up in the bar at the Snakepit and the atmosphere was electric," said White, who was the Hawks administration/operations manager (1992-2004) and finance and office administration (2009-2013).

"We really enjoyed the evening and started attending regularly and became season ticket holders. 

"During the next couple of years, we became involved with the supporters club and I assisted with outfitting and training the cheer girls. 

"At this time, the club was run under the banner of the Illawarra Basketball Association by a separate board of supporters. 

"In 1992, I was the first employee of the Hawks and provided support in all forms of administration, season tickets, fundraising in the form of dinners, luncheons, golf days and game operations manager for a few years, until a general manager was employed to seek sponsorship etc - it certainly wasn’t a 9-5 job."

It was during this time that White fell in love with the Wollongong-based franchise.

"I absolutely loved the job, I am a people person and enjoyed the contact with the coaches, supporters,  sponsors, support and office staff and attending board meetings but most importantly the players who came into the club," she said.

"It was more about the people than the game, win or lose it was a job I really enjoyed - we all formed great friendships."

Along with those experiences,  the three memories that stick out to White during that time are:

• the last night at the Snakepit (where the club had a dinner of more than 700 people on the backcourt after defeating the Townsville Suns);
• the Hawks winning the championship in 2001 and celebrating it at the WIN Entertainment Centre;
• being awarded Hawks life membership.

"We've have had so many highs and lows during my time with the club," said White, who mentioned Chuck Harmison, Eric Cooks, Mat Campbell, Glen Saville and Tim Coenraad as her favourite all-time Hawks.

"In 1998, the club was destined to collapse, only to be bought by John Carson of Beechwood Homes, who breathed new life into the club for five years.

'Then another few years of struggle for a group of very dedicated business people was again about to dissolve when Arun Jagatramka of Wollongong Coal saved the club in 2009 after being approached by Mat Campbell and a group of supporters. 

"That became a troubling time too and with a board of directors again facing difficulties.

"The club has now moved into positive territory with new owners who have increased the profile of the club with a great coach, team and staff."

On that, White believes this year's team has the talent to add a second banner to the WIN Entertainment Centre rafters.

"This year’s team, while showing great potential, have had to face many obstacles caused by the disruption of COVID and injuries," she said.

"If we get all that sorted, I can't see why we can't make a deep playoff run and hopefully win another championship."