Hawkes scored his first goal for Sunderland against Port Vale in the EFL Cup in August, but went on to seal a season-long loan move to League Two side Tranmere the same month.
Over a month into his spell at Prenton Park, the 22-year-old is now a regular starter for Tranmere and scored his first goal for Micky Mellon’s side against Colchester United on Friday.
Looking back at his temporary switch from Sunderland to Tranmere, Hawkes revealed that the offer to join the Super White Army came late in the window when he was looking for first team opportunities.
Hawkes, who has made two senior appearances for Sunderland, explained that the offer to join Tranmere on loan was an opportunity that excited him and one that he could not say no to.
“It was quite late in the day“, Hawkes told Tranmere’s in-house media.
“I was obviously looking to try and get games and Tranmere came in with the opportunity.
“I couldn’t really turn it down, to be honest, it was an opportunity that I knew was important for me.
“I was just really looking forward to it as soon as I heard Tranmere wanted me.”
Hawkes admitted that he was not in his best shape when he arrived at Tranmere having missed a good chunk of pre-season at Sunderland, but he feels he is fully fit now.
“I missed a little bit of the chunk of pre-season at Sunderland due to COVID“, Hawkes said.
“I came back towards the end of pre-season, played a few games, a bit limited up until I came here with minutes.
“But yes, I’m catching up and I feel like I’m fully 100 per cent now, so hopefully I can push on.“
Having scored his first goal for Tranmere against Colchester on Friday, Hawkes will be hopeful of adding more to his tally before returning to Sunderland next summer.
