St Bernard’s Tested by Reigning Premiers in Season Opener
St Bernard’s opened their 2026 campaign with a tough assignment, travelling down to Brighton Beach Oval to face the reigning premiers, Old Brighton. It was clear skies, ideal conditions for football and the stage was set for a strong contest and an early indication for how the season ahead may go.
Intensity was high from the first bounce and the opening quarter saw both teams able to gain possession of the ball. Unfortunately for St Bernard’s, they had to work twice as hard to generate any efficient ball movement due to the well drilled and high intensity opposition. By contrast, Old Brighton were able to move the ball with speed and precision, putting scoreboard pressure on early during the game. Despite having promising passages of play and more inside forward 50s, St. Bernard’s forwards struggled to capitalise managing just two behinds for the term while Old Brighton piled on 5.1 (31).
It was 5 minutes into the second quarter that St Bernard’s were finally rewarded for their efforts with Marcus Holland kicking a snag on the run in the forward pocket, however the game was still highly dominated by Old Brighton. The back six stood tall all afternoon and were a clear positive for the game. Under consistent pressure all afternoon they showed strong communication, structure and resilience.
Through the midfield, St Bernard’s competed hard, but the depth and class of Old Brighton began to show more as the game wore on. Luke Said battled all day, breaking tackles and trying to generate forward movement wherever possible showing strength and composure through the guts. Inside the forward 50, St Bernard’s did have their chances but inefficiency going forward proved costly and by half time, Old Brighton had extended their lead 8.6 (54) to 1.5 (11), and while Bernard’s continued to fight, the scoreboard gap proved difficult to close.
The third quarter saw St Bernard’s start with a bit of momentum, quickly kicking two goals after the break and bringing the margin back to 30 points however Old Brighton didn’t take long to answer and pushed the margin back out swiftly. As the game progressed, fatigue began to sink in and the reigning premiers demonstrated their class, extending their margin and ending up as convincing winners 20.15 (135) to 6.8 (44).
Despite the less than ideal result, there were still a multitude of positives to take away for the St Bernard’s cohort. The defensive unit in particular worked tirelessly all day. The return of Ben Overman was integral with his pace off the half back, ability to read play and provide direction to those around him. After having a strong pre-season with Port Melbourne, Luca Alessio was able to read the ball aerially and ensure his opposition took no easy marks. Harry Schumann ran the whole game out with intensity and was able to cover both sides of the ground all the way to the final siren. However it was his brother, Ethan Schumann that was the best of the day, he finished the day with 23 touches, 11 clearances, 5 inside 50s and goal.
The club now looks forward to round two where St Bernard’s have their first home game for the season and face off against Old Scotch in the highly anticipated ANZAC day clash. It will be a huge day for the club and a chance to show the competition what they’re truly capable of this year.
FINAL SCORE
OLD BRIGHTON 5.1 31 8.6 54 13.9 87 20.15 135
ST BERNARDS 0.2 2 1.5 11 4.7 31 6.8 44
Best on:
Old Brighton: Campbell Tweedie, Sam Linder, Angus Corke, Archi Manton, Luke Travers, Ryan Agg
St Bernards: Ethan Schumann, Luca Alessio, Harrison Schumann, Ben Overman, Luke Said, Zac Overman
Goals:
Old Brighton: A.Manton 6, R. Agg 2, H. Dick 2, F. Flockhart 2, B.Pryor 2, F. Campigli, H.Hill, T.Howden, M. Karayannis, S.Linder, L. Travers
St Bernards: M. Watson 2, N.Conlan, M.Holland, E. Schumann, H.Schumann.
Written By: Hannah Juricskay